My Season 8
by asdfghjklasdfghjklasdfghjkl
Summary: I decided to create my own version of an 8th Season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Following straight after Chosen this is how i believe the Buffy phenominon could have continued. Give it a shot, i hope you enjoy it.
1. Episode 1: A Guilty Conscience

(I own nothing to do with Buffy the vampire slayer, I am just a fan)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, episode 1  
A Guilty Conscience  
[First part of the Season Beginning]

Previously, At the Hellmouth...

"Osiris! Here lies the warrior of the people. Let her cross over!"  
-Willow brought Buffy back from the dead.

"So here's the part where you make a choice. What if you could have that power, now? In every generation, one Slayer is born, because a bunch of men who died thousands of years ago made up that rule. They were powerful men. This woman... is more powerful than all of them combined. So I say we change the rule. I say my power... should be _our_ power. Tomorrow, Willow will use the essence of the Scythe to change our destiny. From now on, every girl in the world who _might_ be a Slayer, _will_ be a Slayer. Every girl who _could_ have the power, _will_ have the power, _can_ stand up, will stand up. Slayers... every one of us. Make your choice. Are you ready to be strong?"  
-Willow changed the fabric of reality by changing the rule by which a Slayer into every generation is chosen.

"Andrew! Did you see? Is she-"  
"I don't know, I-I was scared,"  
"Did you see?"  
"She was amazing. She died saving my life."  
"That's my girl. Always doing the stupid thing."  
-Anya was killed in the destruction of Sunnydale.

Present day...[-] Chapter 1

L.A cemetery, it seemed to have a different vibe to the familiar Sunnydale cemeteries. The tombs and graves stones formed a majestic skyline over the dark abyss and the mist rolled in from the south which made it hard to see the dark green damp grass below their feet clearly. He was knew and unaware of the rules of the game that he had no experience playing. The only thing he could recall was waking up in a dark, cramped box underground. He broke his way to the surface and gazed in every direction to survey his surroundings. The mist made it hard to see through the many trees around him but he could faintly make out a silhouette in the darkness. "Who's there?" he called out. -Twang- went a crossbow arrow as it narrowly missed his left shoulder and plummeted into a tree behind him. It had come from the direction of the silhouette so he took off at breakneck speed in the opposite direction. He was amazed at his speed and the fact that he did not trip or even stumble once. He arrived at a clearing in the back of the cemetery near the old condemned church. A twig snapped somewhere in the far right of his direction and the newborn vampire went with his instincts and this time went towards it. He looked around for a few seconds too long and was sent trembling into the cemetery boundary wall. He landed awkwardly on his side and wasted crucial moments sprawling to his feet. He looked at his assassin and let out a week laugh. "You, you're chasing me? But you're just a little girl. Guess somebody wasn't taught any manners now was she? Such insolence demands punishment!" He exclaimed as he lunged forward at the 13 year old girl in front of him. She dodged his attack and kicked him right back into the brick wall only this time he made a dent in it.

"Attacking little girls in dark cemeteries at night is hardly setting a healthy example now is it?" she retorted.

"Oh that's it, let's dance baby girl." He once again lunged at her but instead caught her off guard by ducking under her attack and thrusting her by the neck into the nearest tombstone. She hit it with an almighty thump and shook her head from side to side.

"Owch!" she exclaimed as she started at him once more. She managed to get a few healthy punches at him but in the end was no match for him. He grabbed her last attempt at a punch and twisted her around so that she was standing in front of him but facing the opposite direction. He glared down at her appetizing and supple neck and every natural instinct began to kick in. He leant in.

"Goodnight baby doll, don't let the bed bugs bite-." Suddenly the arm that was tightly wrapped around her torso was weakened and condemned to dust. She turned around to see who had saved her and a blonde woman with a familiar face stood looking down at her holding a stake in her gloved hand.

"I had him!" cried Amalia up at Buffy's face.

"Good effort Amalia, really don't feel bad it was only your second attempt after training. Come on out girls." commanded Buffy. Eight different girls swiftly popped out from their hiding places behind trees and hedges, all of different races, origins and ages. They joined Buffy and Amalia and formed a group semi circle against the cemetery boundary wall. "Can anybody tell me what Amalia did wrong?" She asked. An Asian girl raised her hand, she seemed no older that sixteen. "Yes um Fumiko, right?"

"Yes, um, is it that-that she... talked too much?" she asked while she thought carefully about her words.

"Partly, can anybody tell me why talking during your fight can be beneficial?" Buffy asked again. A Caucasian girl with long black her spoke out.

"Because it can confuse your opponent, make them lose focus. Gives us the edge." She said with emphasis.

"Good, correct. Thank you..."

"It's Kate."

"Kate..."

"**Just **Kate."

"Right, okay. Thank you Kate. Can anybody else tell me how talking too much is bad, well not so much bad but not good?" Buffy asked enthusiastically. Kate spoke out again.

"Because you could end up focusing too much on what your next comeback will be instead of planning how you're going to best dust that evil son-of-a bitch."

"Again, correct." Buffy studied Kate for a moment or two. Her hair seemed straightened and reached down to her lower back. She wore a pale beige coat with black buttons and black pants. She seemed around seventeen years old and had her arms folded. She had a scar across her right eyebrow and appeared angry yet enthusiastic to learn. The sky had turned an off pink colour in the time that Buffy had quizzed the slayers, the mist had retreated from the cemetery and the grass became clear. "Okay guys listen up, it's almost sunrise so follow Rona back to the car and she'll take you all back to the Hotel." said Buffy. Rona signalled the Slayers to follow her back to the direction of the entrance and they turned to follow. "Uh, not you" the girls turned around puzzled as to who Buffy was addressing. "Kate, you're with me." Buffy watched as Rona and the other seven slayers disappeared into the crevasse that was L.A cemetery.

Buffy tapped Kate on the shoulder but when Kate turned around Buffy was gone. "What the..." she said as she looked around.

"Up here" Buffy called from the cemetery wall. Buffy must've leaped up onto it and sat down. "Tell you what, if you can leap over this wall I will answer your first question completely truthfully no matter how embarrassing or personal it is, do we have a deal?" Kate enjoyed a challenge and so began attempts at getting over the wall. It just seemed to get taller and taller. Her first attempt she just plain jumped at it but couldn't get the right force off of the ground. Next she tried running at the wall but Y'know, gravity's a bitch. Kate got to around her seventh attempt and just managed to grasp the roof of the wall and began to pull herself up. Buffy quickly reached for her hands and pulled them off causing her to descend back to the ground.

"What the hell was that!" asked Kate angrily.

"I didn't say I was going to make this easy for you" Buffy replied innocently.

"Pffftt, Y'know what, I don't need this, I'm outa here." Kate said bitterly whilst thrusting her arms in the air and walking in the opposite direction.

"You're just going to give up, just like that? Guess I was wrong about you." Buffy assumed. Kate turned back around and noticed Buffy about to jump back onto the ground.

"Wait!" Kate cried as she began walking back towards her with hands on hips. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"First, lose the attitude and second, I just thought of you as somebody who perceivers, is different and likes a challenge"

"Don't go throwing round that reverse psychology crap at me Buffy, you don't know me."

"I'm not. And true, I don't know you at all. But that's what I'm out here trying to do. Now I don't think you can actually get over this wall. So prove me wrong, I dare ya. Besides, if you don't hurry up, you're gunna be her first meal." Buffy said whilst pointing at a female vampire who was climbing out of her grave.

"Damn it, Buffy this isn't funny! I've never had a one on one with a vamp before, help me up, please" Feared Kate. Buffy rummaged through her pockets and dropped a stake to the floor. "Are you kidding me!" Kate asked angrily. Buffy shrugged and simply smiled. Kate tore off her coat and threw it at the floor where it heaped up near the grave of one Michael Gregory. She picked up the stake and stood waiting for the vampire to make the first move. The vampire wore a long floral red and white dress and had short, curly blonde hair that was covered in mud. "Y'know the fact that you're blonde really makes you less intimidating" said Kate mockingly.

"Hey!" called Buffy from above. Kate rolled her eyes and made the first move. She leaned forward and went straight for trying to stake the vamp. The vampire caught her attack and knocked the stake out of her hand, kicked her to the torso and she stumbled over her jacket to the ground. The vamp jumped on top of her and began to lean in to feed off of her. Kate retaliated with a head but which disoriented the vamp long enough for Kate to get back up. The vampire made several back-hand punch, normal punch and kick attempts but considering Kate had never had a one-on-one she was remarkably skilled. She side kicked the vampire into the tomb and she fell to the floor. Kate ran at the tomb, bounced off of it and hurled herself onto the wall next to Buffy.

"What are you doing, are you just going to unleash a vampire onto the streets of Los Angeles?" Buffy asked confused.

Kate handed Buffy her stake back and said "Just wait for it." The sun shone through the gap in-between Buffy's and Kate's heads which shone onto the vampire, she screamed out with pain and was set on fire, then crumbled to dust.  
"Impressive," Buffy said approvingly. "What about your jacket?"

"There's blood on it from when I tripped over it and hit my head, besides I think I've earned a new one" Kate said as she smiled and tucked her hair back behind her ears.

"C'mon" Buffy dropped off of the wall on the opposite side which revealed a street of roaring early morning cars and business men, "We can get back to Angel's hotel this way." Kate followed her off of the wall and across the streets.

Buffy didn't like the big city and as demon infested as it was, she missed Sunnydale. She missed the familiar feeling of home but all that was left was a giant crater stretching for miles. L.A had huge skyscrapers and men in hot dog suits while Sunnydale remained suburban and secluded. Even though they had only been in L.A for a week she felt as though she'd lost ten inches in height, she felt so small and lonely. This was very odd considered the amount of people she was surrounded with. She had her loving friends and Giles, Andrew, Dawn and of course the new slayers. They had arrived in L.A with about seventeen slayers but in the past week Willow managed to locate another nine just in L.A. Kate was one of those nine, Willow found her two days ago and convinced her foster parents to let her go with them. Kate seemed so at home in L.A which made Buffy very envious as she assumed they would be in the city for a while. They reached a street corner and Buffy could make out the outline of the Hyperion Hotel "If that was your first one-on-one, where did you learn to fight like that?"

"Oh I grew up in a house with six older brothers, it was either learn how to fight or be drooled on until they all moved out. Besides my Dad liked his whiskey, he used to hit my Mom and I when the boys were out. But eventually my Mom left and I got stuck with twice the beatings. But I knew my Mom was safe so I just went on like everything was okay."

"Kate, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be, I'm not."

"So about that question I promised you"- Buffy began.

"Well I did take care of that vampire too; wouldn't you agree I've earned another one?" inquired Kate.

"That is true, sure why not. I'm going to regret this aren't I?"

"It's possible, so I guess my first question would have to be, was it hard?"

"Was what hard?"

"Being told you were chosen for some higher purpose, that you're destined to kill demons and vampires and stuff until one of them kills you instead?"

"I was called to be the Slayer just after my sixteenth birthday. It was actually here in L.A. It was only after that we moved to Sunnydale. Family stuff, and Willow did tell you that it wasn't always like this right, that it wasn't always that there where thirty or forty slayers in one area alone?"

"No..."

"You haven't been told about what happened?"

"Not exactly no, I was only told that I was chosen, dragged off to some hotel here in L.A with about two dozen other girls, given a room and basically told nothing. Well except the basics on monster killing."

"Kate, I'm so sorry I didn't know..."

"It's fine Buffy please, there are so many new girls arriving I get that it's hard to keep up. Please, go on."

"Well about a while ago this mega bad-ass demon called the first tried to wipe out the slayer line off of the face of the planet."

"What's the Slayer line?"

"Oh right, I, um, basically up until a week ago there were only two Slayers in the hole world alone. You see the legend is '_into every generation there is a chosen one. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer.' _Giles loves telling that speech by the way." Kate laughed. "And when I turned sixteen I was called to be **The Slayer**. Just me, nobody else, and that's when my Mom and I moved to Sunnydale. Are you following okay?"

"Yeah, go on."

"Well that's where I met Xander and Willow"-

"Xander, that drunk on the third floor in the hotel?"

"He's going through a rough patch right now; he just needs time alone for a while. Anyway there was this big evil bad guy vampire called the Master, who I fought and I lost. He killed me. I was dead for about two, three minutes before Xander and Angel gave me CPR. Eventually I beat the guy but because I was physically dead, a new slayer was called. Her name was Kendra."

"Kendra, that's Willow's girlfriend right?"

"Wow you really are new to this aren't you? No, no her name is Kennedy."

"Oh right, yeah."

"Well after about a year of Kendra being a Slayer she was murdered by one of Angel's old buddies called Drusilla, she's a vampire."

"Angel is a vampire!"

"Whoa, calm down he has this gypsy curse going for him, basically he has a soul now.

"So he's like a good vampire?"

"Exactly, anyway when Kendra died that's when Faith was called. And for a long time it was just me and her"

"Well that must've made it easier, Y'know lift the weight off of your shoulders?"

"Well for about half a year, seven months sure."

"Why, was she abducted by aliens or something?" Kate said jokingly.

"No, she went crazy and tried to kill us all." Buffy said plainly. It felt so odd to be sharing her life story with a girl she barely knew.

"Oh, right, well, um" Stuttered Kate.

"Oh no it's all okay now, I mean I put her in a coma for nine months but she eventually did her time in jail. We had to break her out though because we needed her help with the upcoming apocalypse. You see you only received your abilities about a week ago right? Before that you were just a potential slayer. A potential slayer is a slayer that hasn't been called yet. And The First thought it would be fun to wipe out the potential slayers so that when it killed Faith and I that would be it, no more slayers. So Giles started rounding them up and bringing them to Sunnydale for protection. And we trained them to fight but they were no match for the uber-vamps that worked for the first and came out of the Hellmouth. You see thousands of years ago three magical priests took a girl from her village or tribe or whatever and chained her down in a cave. They infused her with the strength and speed of a demon. And through that spell they created the very first Slayer, one girl in the entire world and into ever generation a new slayer is chosen when the old slayer dies, so I decided lets change the rule. And Willow used the magic of the Scythe"-

"The Scythe?"

"It's sort of like a Slayer's version of a light sabre, only better and less noisy. So yeah I got Willow to do this spell above the Hellmouth"-

"The Hellmouth?"

"Like the area 51 of vamps and demons and whatever else. Sunnydale High was actually built right on top of the one in Sunnydale, that's why it wasn't your typical American High School. Anyhow I got Willow to use the Scythe's essence to change the rule. We made every potential Slayer into an actual Slayer. They just need to be taught the basics and"-

"So you did this to me?" Kate stopped dead in her tracks and faced Buffy.

"What?" Buffy asked Confused and alarmed.

"You're the reason My Daddy's lying in a hospital bed right now!"

"Kate I didn't touch your father, I don't even know him."

"No Buffy, you don't understand. I came home from school one day; my Dad was drunk and passed out on the couch so I turned the T.V off. I knocked over a bottle off the coffee table and it smashed on the floor. He was so angry with me, furious actually. He pushed me down and got on top of me, and suddenly his hits didn't hurt as much anymore. I had this knew instinct to fight back so I did. I kicked him off of me and he flew right across the room. He hit his head on the corner of the fire place flame. My brother Tom was upstairs in the shower. He heard the commotion and ran downstairs and found me standing over him. He was bleeding out on the floor." Kate had begun to cry. She held her hands out in front of Buffy and started to shout. People from across the streets began to stare. "These almost killed my Father. My brothers couldn't even look at me after that. I told my Mom that he was hitting me again but she acted like she didn't know what I was talking about. So I ran away, here to L.A where I was put into foster care. And they loved me, I was only there for three months but I could tell that they loved me, and for once I'd found a home that I wanted to go to after school. And you dragged me away from that!"

"Kate, I-I-I did-didn't"-

"I guess my second question is going to have to be how guilty and pathetic do you feel know?" Kate gasped her mouth with her hand and grasped her stomach with the other. They were standing just outside of the entrance to the Hyperion. The gates where old and rusted but the flowers inside seemed to bloom. The fountain the centre glistened in the morning sunshine but Buffy could not take the time to appreciate how beautiful it was because she was still stunned by the revelation that Kate had just declared to her. Kate ran inside.

Buffy sat on the edge of the water fountain and contemplated the pavement tiles until Dawn came out and asked "What's her problem?"

"Are we bad people Dawnie?" Buffy asked.

[-] Chapter 2

"What?" Dawn was deeply confused.

"What we did to these girls, was it incredibly selfish?" Buffy asked with tears welling up in her eyes.

"What we did to these girls, I never really contemplated it before now, and I guess I just assumed they didn't have a life before becoming a slayer. A lot of these girls had families, friends and a home. And we took them away from that, we literally dropped a huge wait on their shoulders and expected them to accept it. Well I did at least. And me most of all should know the loneliness and isolation that comes with being a slayer and I did that to these girls."

"Buffy listen to me" Dawn grabbed Buffy's face to interrupt her gaze at the floor so she'd look instead into her eyes. "Listen to me very carefully. Girls from all around the world were being brutally murdered by the big daddy Evil; all you did was give those girls a chance to defend themselves. "

"Well yeah but at what expense? We still have to find them all, train them all and then tell them that it's their duty to protect their village, town or even city. Tell them they have to keep this big secret, and I don't' know if I can do that Dawn. Maybe it's time for me to get out of the slayer game. I carried that weight around for seven years and then I go and pull a stunt like this? I think I'm done. Finished."

"I don't believe that Buffy. Maybe what we did was a little selfish, but half of those girls would have been found by the bringers and killed by now. We did was what right for the greater good and we won"-

"And it doesn't matter who we hurt in the process?"

"Of course it matter's Buffy but you of all people should know that there are hard decisions to make in life. When you first became the Slayer it took some adjusting, there were a lot of nights when I would here you crying in your room. But it got easier right? And it will for these girls I promise you."

"You really think so?"

"I know so. Now come inside, everybody is waiting for you."

"Who exactly is everybody?"

"When I came out to see you Giles, Willow, Angel, Faith, Kennedy and Mr. Wood were waiting in the lobby. The girls are still in bed."

"Xander hasn't come out of his room yet then huh?"

"He comes and goes. Mostly just to break into Wesley's liquor cabinet. Willow tried talking to him this morning but he just grunted whenever she paused for a reply"

"He should be okay soon. We'll find a place somewhere, or maybe stay here. I don't know but ill figure it out. Let's go inside." Dawn rubbed her thumb over Buffy's face where the tears had slided from her eyes to her jaw. Buffy put her arm around her sister and they walked side-by-side simultaneously through the entrance to the Hyperion. The carpet was an off blue colour and seemed torn and tattered in patches. The stairs led onto a hard tiled floor which was home to magical symbol that Angel must've used before Buffy arrived. The office was closed and shut off from view and four girls sat talking on the balcony. Giles was leaning on a pillar near the stairway to the balcony and Angel leaned against a wall on the opposite side of the room, his arms where folded and he looked extremely tired. Willow was sat on a sofa in the centre of the room holding Kennedy's hand as she sat next to her. Faith and Robin also sat hand in hand but on the opposite sofa. Robin was bleeding under the white wife-beater vest he was wearing. Dawn kissed Buffy on the cheek and whispered "I'll be upstairs if you need me." Buffy pulled her arm off of her and sat down on the stairs that Dawn had just ascended up. She put her head in her lap and the room fell silent. The girls on the balcony above seemed to have disappeared. Everybody looked at her contently. They expected so much of her, Buffy thought those days were over when she cast the spell to give the potential slayers their abilities but it was only for a brief second. The sound of a liquor bottle smashing from one floor up broke the silence in the room and Buffy looked up. She spotted the blood on Robin as she swished the hair out of her vision.

"What happened to you?" she asked politely.

"Vanguard demon just outside of the city limits kinda' roughed me up a little; I'll be fine."

"How are the girls?" Faith asked.

"They're adjusting if nothing else." Buffy replied. The silence continued for a while, maybe even longer this time, Angel paced up and down the room as to stop him falling asleep and Giles cleaned his glasses as though it were an Olympic sport.

"What the hell, I'm just gunna say it." Kennedy announced. "What the hell are we doing here Buffy? It's been just over a week and we're still hiding out like animals."

"Kennedy!" whispered Willow angrily.

"What, you where all thinking it; I'm just the only one willing to say it." Kennedy spat as she let go of Willow's hand and folded her arms across her chest.

"You know what Kennedy I'm sick of you speaking up and thinking you're so much better than me." Buffy began, "But guess what, now you're a slayer too. You're just as strong as I am; you're just as fast as I am and so are all other girls. Why is it always me that has to make these tough decisions? I don't know what's best for us right now. We buried our home under miles of rubble and all that is left of it is a huge crater that the news is blaming on bizarre alien activity. If you're so willing to do all these things why don't you take charge for once? Because like most of you, I'm tired, no I'm exhausted." Buffy waited for Kennedy to respond maybe verbally or physically but instead she remained in her seat and wouldn't make eye contact with anybody. "Yeah that's what I thought. But she did have a point. We've been an inconvenience to Angel for long enough, we need our own place."

"Or you could stay here?" Angel interjected.

"What?" Buffy asked, "What about Angel investigations?"

"Actually we've been offered a position at Wolfram & Hart. We thought we'd take a look Y'know, diminish evil from the ground up. Wesley, Fred and Gun are there now but I thought it best to stay here. If we take the job then this place is yours." He offered.

"Let's not rule anything out yet, it's a very good offer Buffy and with more girls arriving every day we need a place as big as this, possibly bigger to do training and give the girls a place to sleep." Giles advised.

"Yeah I guess that's a start. Does anybody else have any bright ideas?"

"Cleveland." Willow added.

"What's Cleveland? Or better question, where is Cleveland?" Faith asked.

"Of course Willow! Cleveland is a city in Ohio right here in the U.S" Giles explained

"Yeah and Sunnydale was a town in northern California. What's so special about Cleveland?" Faith asked.

"Cleveland too is the home to one of the six Hellmouth's on the planet. Well one of the two still active now that Sunnydale Hellmouth is destroyed." Giles explained again.

"So what, we just saddle up and rent out a few tents on a field somewhere in Cleveland and spend another seven years of our lives killing bad guys? I don't think so." Buffy said disapprovingly.

"Well were better to train the Slayers Buffy than a Hellmouth? We have to so what is right for these girls no matter the cost, It was us that did this to them."Giles muttered.

"Y'know what, I'm sick of that crap. We never did this to those girls, they were chosen, just like I was! There becoming a Slayer was inevitable." Buffy cried in frustration.

"Well yeah B but we didn't exactly stand by and watch until they got their Slayer powers did we? We pushed those girls to the front of the queue to be next in line to be chosen. That's on us... and red here." Faith said as the voice of reason. Willow dropped her head and looked down at her shoes; she refused to feel guilty for casting that spell. "It was a necessary risk" she thought.

"So that's it, we're going to Cleveland? Robin asked.  
"We can just up and go, were will we stay, on the streets?" Buffy asked as she became more and more okay with the idea. She did indeed feel guilt for sharing the weight of being a slayer with these girls and she figured this was the best way to help them.

"No." Nobody had noticed that Wesley had entered the Hotel Hyperion. He was dirty and unshaven and his brown jacket seemed to darken the mood in the room.

"Wesley is everything okay at Wolfram & Hart?" Angel sounded concerned.

"Yes Angel everybody is fine. We took the deal, But on one condition. I asked that Wolfram and Hart use whatever was left of their evil resources money to find the Slayers a place to train. They found several estates all over the world that seem big enough and secluded enough for you to begin training the girls. All you have to do is pick one." Wesley tried to hide an excited smile behind his rugged frown.

"So that's it then, we become the new faces of the centre of all evil in Los Angeles and Buffy picks up and leaves to a musty old fortress in Cleveland?" Angel asked. It seemed to be all too easy.

"It would appear so and nice choice on Cleveland by the way Mr. Giles. What would you do without any Hellmouth to battle?" Wesley stated with a grin. The gang began to mumble amongst themselves. Buffy got out of her sitting position, stood up and faced Wesley.

"Is this legit Wes, I mean it just all seems so sudden." She asked timidly.

"I've gone over the contract several times Buffy, all that's getting in your way is Angel's signature at the bottom of the page." He explained. Buffy turned round to face Angel and he signalled her to the corner of the room, she responded and walked after him.

"Is this what you want Buffy?" He asked, "Are you sure you want to fight the Hellmouth over again?"

"I gotta' be honest it wasn't my first choice but like Faith said, we had a major part in changing these girl's lives and if moving to the Hellmouth and training them there helps us make up for that then I have to take it, with or without your help." She emphasised as she gazed into his eyes for a brief moment waiting for a response. He gently put his hands on her shoulder and moved it down to her body until he grasped her hand.

"I trust you to have made the right decision here Buffy." He stated.  
"I have." She replied.

Buffy stayed in the lobby of the hotel with Giles, Wesley and Angel deciding on a property to move into in Cleveland whiles the girls and remaining scoobies had some breakfast and started packing. The contract didn't come with any images so Buffy had to use her imagination to form the picture of the building in her mind from the description provided. She decided on a condemned building that was once a boarding school for boys in the 1890's. There was an apparent earthquake which caused the building to be set on fire. All but four teachers and twenty one students made it out alive. Wolfram and Hart bought the property about eight months ago to house some of their... otherworldly clients and had begun refurbishment. Before the building was made into a boarding school Wesley told Buffy that Wolfram and Hart had found evidence that a Slayer from the early 14th century named Cassandra Blaire led a crusade of warriors against an evil warlock named Nathaniel Thomas. He bested her in the fight but she managed to strip his magical abilities before she went down completely. It was this epic tale that persuaded Buffy to train her girls there.  
It was a long drive from Los Angeles to Ohio. Thirty one hours and twenty eight minutes to be exact. Willow was going to book flights on the web but was reminded that Faith was still top on the FBI's most wanted list and as soon as she entered a federal airport, she was a goner. So Angel leant them some money to rent out two coaches, two vans and a Giles's car. Robin offered to drive one van of luggage while Faith drove the other. Kennedy and Rona were put in charge of keeping an eye on the girls on the coaches while they endured the day's journey from L.A to Ohio. Giles, Buffy, Willow, Xander and Dawn road it Giles' car as they trailed behind the two coaches as Giles didn't know how to get there. Giles drove while Buffy rode shotgun. Dawn was wedged spaciously in between Willow and Xander. Willow wore a pair of large darkly tinted sunglasses while Xander wore a dirty T-shirt that was once white but had turned a dark yellow colour. Over that her wore a red and white un-buttoned check shirt that Willow had cleaned for him this morning, and of course his eye patch.  
"So this is fun huh guys? Just the original scoobies on a road trip down California highway" Willow said whilst making an ocean wave gesture with her hand out of the car.

"You're awfully chipper this morning Will!" Buffy grinned as she wiped her hair out of her face as she looked into the back seat.

"I feel real good about this Buff, like were moving on and re-writing the written! How 'bout you Xand, got any vibes about the future?" She asked him nervously. He didn't reply, but instead fondled with one of the buttons on his shirt. "Xand, Xander?"

"Hugh, what, I um... future vibes right, nope I haven't felt anything like that in a while." He said as he swigged off another portion of a can of beer he was holding. Willow wished she had just left him alone and Dawn placed her hand on his knee.

"You okay Xand?" Buffy asked concerned.

"Y'know I wish everybody would just stop asking me that. Look at me! I've never felt better"- He gestured his arm up when he said the word better and lost grip on the beer can. It landed on the floor of the car and began to stain Giles' white leather seats. Dawn quickly bent over to pick it up and threw it out onto the sidewalk.

"Oh, Xander look at my car!" Giles exclaimed. Xander reached for a bottle this times and ripped of the lid off of it causing it to make a _'tssssssssss' _sound.

"That's life G-man. She sucks like a bitch." He mumbled as his lips curved around the tip of the bottle. He nudged Dawns hand off of his lap and slouched back into his seat. The rest of the car journey was filled with awkward small talk and radio fiddling. Xander eventually passed out as it began to get dark. The highway was empty and Rona noticed a sign saying "Now leaving Indiana, Ohio dead ahead." Buffy noticed it too so she silently nudged Willow and pointed the sign out to her. Willow told Buffy to call Rona and tell her to wake up the girls and tell them they'll be arriving in around a half hour. Willow did the same with Kennedy and Robin and Faith signalled with their headlights that they already knew. They were driving along the hill side for about 10 minutes; Willow got a little upset when Xander didn't make a _'Road Runner' _joke, when they bent around the corner. The driver of the in front coach honked his horn to signal that they had arrived. Wesley had described the building itself as 'a safe house, just outside of the city limits, safe and secluded' but even Kennedy who was showered in luxuries from birth was impressed by this place. It was more of a mansion type fortress than a safe house. It was still early hours in the morning so only the contour was visible but it was huge to put it lightly. It must have had at least four floors and the walls emanated right from the cliff side. The yellow glow of light coming out the many windows gave the impression to Dawn that she had finally been accepted to Hogwarts. The driver of the front coach turned onto a private lane and entered some combination into a machine that opened the gates. The road stretched upwards towards the fortress and was lit up by what seemed to be solar powered street lights. They reached another set of gates only these were smaller and bared. Four armed burley men in black commando uniforms stood at the gate and kept a watchful eye at Giles's car and the other vehicles. The two coaches pulled over at opposite ends of the path. Faith pulled up her van near Rona's coach while Robin pulled up his next to Kennedy's. Giles parked in the dead centre. All was silent, Faith looked over at Buffy. Buffy shook her head at Faith and Robin to signal them to stay where they were. Robin gave the same look to Kennedy and Faith gave the same look to Rona. "Giles stay here, don't let anybody leave the car, turn back as fast as you can if there's trouble." She ordered.

"Buffy, we have around twenty five slayers here and all they are is four men. If they try something they don't have chance." Giles scoffed.

"Giles, those men have guns. We could take them but they'd take half of us first." Buffy warned.

"Ah, yes, well, I um didn't notice that. I suppose ill stay in the car then." Giles agreed. Buffy opened the latch on the car door and it swung open. She stood before the men with her hands on her hips and looked at each one in turn.

"What seems to be the problem officer?" she asked with a twistedly innocent tone.

[-] Chapter 3

"Miss Summers I presume?" asked the guard furthest to the right.

"Yeah, who's asking?" she retorted

"I'm with Wolfram & Hart, we've been expecting you." The gates behind the men opened as the furthest guard to the left whispered something into a device strapped into his shoulder. The guards all entered through the bared black gates one by one and marched up onto the porch of the mansion. They stood and waited for the guard who had spoken first to give them further instructions. He tucked his gun back into its deposit that hung from his shoulder, pulled down his mask and placed a pair of thin sunglasses on. He traipsed up to Buffy and held out his hand as an invitation for a hand shake. His hair was short and spiked in the front but flat in the back and it reflected a brown glow from one of the headlights. He was about two inches taller than Buffy but shorter than Robin. He spoke with a strong British accent and was of Caucasian race. Buffy looked down at his hand and up again into his glasses. She didn't trust the man and so silently refused his hand shake. "Well I can't say I'm surprised, I wouldn't trust me either. But I can assure you if you'll follow me into the Manor all will be explained and you can stay if you like what you here and if you don't then you're free to go."

"Wait a second, if I like what I hear? I was told that this was our place if Angel signed the contract, you're saying that this place comes with terms and conditions?" Buffy asked confused and fiercely.

"Ma'am Wolfram and Hart is a multi-billion dollar company and we just want to make sure we have the details right before we give you this place." He mumbled defensively.

"Buffy!" Faith called, she had gotten out of the van very conspicuously and began walking in Buffy's direction. "Can I speak to you a minute B?"

"Sure Faith" She obliged.

"By all means take your time" the guard said happily. Buffy let out a weak smile and walked over to Faith.

"You're not going in there alone B, this is Wolfram and Hart that we're doing business with here, who knows if that contract Wes was given was even the real deal, or if that was even Wesley!" Faith warned.

"Faith, we have no choice, we don't have the money to pay the drivers to take us back to L.A. We knew when Angel signed that contract that this was a one way street okay? So if you wanna' come inside with me than by all means." Buffy informed. Buffy tried to put on a brave face for the crowd of her friends that was gathered within the perimeter but she secretly felt just as cautious as Faith did. Faith looked nervous but nodded in agreement. They steadily made their way up the narrow foot path that ran through the gates with the guard leading the way.

"Y'know I hate saying I told you so B" whispered Faith.

"We both know that's what you live for," Buffy joked. The Slayers smiled at each other. Buffy could see the building a lot clearer now. The walls had patches of brick that seemed really old, the moss that grew on them spread down to the ground, other patches of brick seemed charred but stable but most of the brick work seemed six weeks old. The history of this building could be understood just from a glance at the entrance. The grand doors were made out of dark wood and metal. The frame was brand new; the steel door knockers hung from around the height of Faith's shoulder and had the pattern of a lion on it. There was also a crest at the very top of the door, it was shaped like an old fashioned shield and was split into four sections. The top left section of the shield had the letter C on it while the bottom right had the letter B on it.  
They finally caught up with the other guards who pushed open the doors for Buffy and Faith. The main guard gestured his hand through the threshold and the Slayers entered the Manor. They were completely astounded by the size of the building. The entrance hall –as the guard called it- was about the size of Sunnydale College library and just as grand. The walls were layered in thick dark red paint that was illuminated by the grand glass chandelier that hung above their heads and the several lamps and fire torch's that hung off of the walls. The windows were draped with long flowing curtains and the ceiling was painted with quite a unique pattern. Two large light wooded staircases derived from the upper floor, a long old red carpet was sown into the wood of the stairs in the centre. There was a lounge area to the left of the entrance hall with numerous brown leather corner sofas and a T.V hung from the wall. And to the right was an extensive white glass table draped with a dark brown cloth that matched the tall dark brown leather chairs that were neatly tucked under it. In-between the two staircases on the ground floor however was a closed door that suggested it was as old as the moss overgrown bricks on the wall outside for it also had the unfamiliar crest on the top of it. "Ladies, if you'll join me at the dining table?" the guard asked. Buffy did as instructed immediately but Faith was still stunned by the room she was standing in, Buffy nudged her and they sat down at one end of the dining table. Buffy counted as they walked up it that the table had twenty four chairs down one side, twenty four opposite and one at each end, you do the math. The guard sat himself at the head of the table while Buffy and Faith took their place next to him but on opposite sides. "Did the Manor make a good impression?" he asked cheerfully and he pulled a white piece of paper out of a briefcase under the table.

"Man you kiddin', this place is tight!" Faith exclaimed. Buffy looked at her as if to say, "Calm down" or "Play it cool." Faith spotted the look and placed her hands in her lap.

"Well good, I'm glad. Allow me to formally introduce myself, my name is Nicholas Reynolds and I have been appointed your liaison to the senor partners." He stated.

"Wait hold on a second, we don't need a liaison buddy. We were told that we we're being given this property as a reward for Angel taking over as CEO of the L.A branch of Wolfram and Hart. We want free range to use this property as we see fit and without influence from any of your 'senor partners'. It's that or the deals off." Buffy bargained. Faith shot Buffy a worrying look but Buffy reassured her that she knew what she was doing.

"I see. Well lucky for you that is what it states here in the contract, the only thing that the senor partners want here is to house me in the Manor to keep an eye on their new investment." Nicholas reassured.

"Right, but what if this eye they have in here, doesn't like what it see's?" Buffy asked. "Do we get instant eviction because that's a deal breaker too."

"I was only told that I need to file a yearly report of what has been happening within the manor. As far as I'm concerned if you fight an apocalypse outside on the front lawn and the Manor remains intact, I see no reason to even mention it in my file. My job is to look after the Manor, not you." His accent made it hard not to trust him because it sounded exactly the same as Giles'. Eventually Buffy was swayed into signing the contract that says that she agreed to _'housing and protecting the liaison to the senor partners'_ and that she '_grants him free range to file whatever he deems worthy in his reports'_. Nicholas placed the signed contract back into his brief case and sat in silence with the Slayers until Faith began asking some questions.

"So Nick, I think you need to fill B and me in on the smaller details of the place, like bathrooms, basements, escape roots..."

"Yes of course, the Manor itself has five floors; each floor has three bathrooms equipped with showers, bathing and lavatory appliances. Each floor also has 12 bedrooms stocked with a double four poster bed and wardrobe. The first floor however has 17 rooms used as teaching rooms back in the 1800's, if you would prefer it Wolfram and Hart can transform those into bedrooms as well. At the end of each corridor is a balcony 10x14 meters in perimeter for recreational and downtime requirements. If you look behind me you will see a closed door. Through that door you will find a fully stocked kitchen, washing machine room and a second lounge area. A library fully stocked with information on everything that goes bump in the night is available through there too. The basement is currently undergoing remodelling so the entrance to it has been magically sealed for your own protection for the time being. You training spaces are temporarily located across the back garden until we can fully renovate the basement to fit your needs. Quilts, toilet paper, basic emergency food, towels and more can be found stored in the attic that is accessible by a ladder found near the fifth floor recreation balcony. Each floor has two reasonably large store rooms that the cleaners in 1890 used to hold their mops and brushes but they're fairly large enough for the witch to stock any magical items she may have and Mr. Giles could use one as an office. As for escape roots, several were built during the crusade of Cassandra Blaire over 400 years ago but none of which have yet been found. Perhaps during your stay here you may stumble across some. Do you have any further questions?" Nicholas asked smugly. Both Faith and Buffy shook their heads from side to side, jaw open slightly at the description Nicholas just provided. "Excellent, now am I right in thinking you have twenty six slayers in your care?"

"Um, I uhh, yes that-that...is correct." Buffy stuttered.

"Marvellous, in order to keep up appearances Wolfram and Hart have told the local city council that this is an orphanage for gifted young women and so they have enrolled your girls that are under the age of eighteen in private school. Uniforms for their appropriate schools are stocked in the attic but the uniforms are only mandatory on special occasions within the campus, or so I'm told. Your girls must attend school from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday" Nicholas informed. "The schools are only a 25-40 minute walk give or take. My room is actually located on the fifth floor at the end of the corridor and if you ever need me, please knock. Please wait for me to dismiss my men and you may bring in your Slayers. I look forward to our futures together Miss Summers."

Two weeks later...

The Girls settled into their new home quite quickly. Lots of the girls had already made friends during their time at the Hyperion so they quickly paired up and explored the mansion to find their chosen room. Most of the younger slayers chose the rooms on the top floor so Faith and Robin picked a room up their also. Then everybody else sort of fanned out across the manor. Giles insisted on a room near the kitchen as he was used to his early morning tea and read of the morning news paper so he chose the first bedroom on the second floor. Xander sat himself in the lounge area through the old door on the bottom floor and picked his room after everybody else; he ended up with the middle room on the fourth floor. Willow insisted that she be close to Xander to keep an eye on him so she and Kennedy chose a room two doors down from his. Dawn sweetly yet assertively asked Buffy if it was okay if she had her own room, Buffy just assumed she'd share with her sister but she didn't mind too much; dawn picked the room next door to Nicholas'. The third floor remained untouched except for Rona and Simone; they had become quite close since she was recruited back in L.A. She was Rona's age and from Rona's home town back in southern Carolina. Kate however was last of the new slayers to pick a room. She was the newest recruit and so hadn't made many friends. She didn't have much luggage either; just a backpack. Buffy wondered whether to ask Kate if she wanted to stay with her but Buffy new that Kate was not her biggest fan. Kate eventually picked a room on the third floor without a roommate. Buffy picked a room two doors down. Andrew asked to share with Xander but he regretted the idea when all Xander did was get drunk, so he wedged himself in-between two bathrooms on the second floor. Giles did eventually clean out one of the old storage closets on the fourth floor and carried a desk down from the attic and created himself an office. He spent most of his time in there reading some of the books he had taken from the downstairs library.

-_Knock, knock, knock- _went Giles' door one Thursday afternoon when 90% of the girls were in school. "Come in." He called. Willow opened the door and entered the room. It was illuminated by a laptop on the desk that shone against a bookshelf behind Giles. Even thought it was compact, Giles loved that room.

"Hi." She greeted him.

"Hello Willow. What can I do for you?"

"Well look at you acting all business man" She grinned and laughed.

"Ah yes, sorry it's so hard not to get caught up in the fact that I have my own office. And people actually knock when they want something. It's brilliant!"

"Well I'm glad. But I was wondering if I could take your car to the magic shop downtown. I'm constantly going back and forth as we exhaust our supplies while I do locator spells searching for lost Slayers but I don't know what it is lately. In the past two weeks we've found nobody in the country. It just seems a little off so I'm going to go down there to get a second opinion from a witch I met last week."

"I'd strongly advise against that Willow. We're new to the city and we don't know who to trust. Besides the Slayers here came into their abilities in their own time, I'm sure we'll have more girls in no time."

"Maybe you're right but I still need those supplies; keys please?"

"Well why don't we order them in? There has to be some other way then making eight trips a week to the magic shop. What if we ordered the supplies by the bucket load and keep a stock cupboard next to your room. That way you wouldn't have to make the trip to the shop several times every week and you could focus more on... whatever it is you focus on."

"We can't afford that Giles. I'm actually looking for work in the city, the kitchen supplies are being diminished and with no source of income we can't even buy simple locater spell essentials yet alone food for twenty six girls and the other nine of us."

"Actually I've been spending time with that Nicholas bloke, he's actually a remarkable fellow, and he told me he could hack into some of the watchers councils old frozen bank accounts. With the council gone there must be thousands of dollars there just waiting for somebody else to take it. Our money problems are a thing of the past Willow. Here" he handed her the car keys, "make the order at the magic shop and at... where ever it is you buy food from in this city. I assure I can take care of us financially, you just do the rest."

"Well you **have** become quite the business man haven't you Giles. I shouldn't be gone long and Kennedy's helping to sort out the classrooms on the first floor with the other six slayers who don't need to go to school. If you could just watch her while I'm away, there are so many girls around her; I get kinda' jealous." With that she swiftly left the room. Giles laughed silently to himself and adjusted his glasses to re begin reading.

Before Buffy, Willow had but one best friend all her life and his name was Alexander Harris. From in kindergarten when Willow broke the yellow crayon and cried, up until they destroyed their home of Sunnydale about one month ago. Throughout their friendship Willow and Xander formed many traditions, like the Charlie Brown movie marathon every Christmas and Xander would do his snoopy dance. But recently they formed a new tradition that neither one of them ever looked forward to. You see in Cleveland the Magic shop is located on a row of stores and on that row was Xander's new favourite hangout, the bench outside the liquor store. Usually when Willow spotted him sitting on that bench; dirty and smelling with his whiskey hand around yet another bottle, she would just smile and wave worryingly in his direction. When she got herself out of Giles' car she spotted him again and so continues their newest tradition. It had been raining heavily all day that day and judging by what Willow could see of Xander through the waterfall of rain he seemed to be dripping wet; he'd been on that bench all day. She smiled and waved just like every other time but he was completely oblivious to her this time. Willow felt like her heart sank in her chest as she turned to walk towards the entrance of the magic shop but the sound of yet another glass bottle smash and Xander screaming made her turn around and dash in his direction. She protected herself from the rain with an umbrella and though the clear plastic of the umbrella cover she could faintly make out the outline of about four little boys throwing things at Xander from across the street. He smashed another used bottle on the floor and grabbed the sharp pieces of glass in both hands. He stood up and began waving them about in the air and shouting things that she could not understand because the sound of the wind in her ears was deafening. As she approached him the kids ran off into an ally and he sat back down on his bench. His hands were bleeding from gripping the shards of glass to hard. "Xander, what are you doing!" Willow exclaimed.

"What does it look like Will, I'm sitting on my bench, and yeah it's **my bench** now!" he replied louder. He was obviously very drunk.

"They were just kids Xander they don't know any better!" she argued.

"Oh yeah, well som-some-somone sh-should teach those brats some manners. You hear that, old Xander is going to teach the children of Cleveland some respect!"

"Xander, you're bleeding." She said she reached for a tissue from her purse.

"Yeah well thanks for the news flash captain obvious!"

"Xander I miss Anya too." Willow cried with tears welling up in her eyes. Xander was stunned by Willow's sudden outburst. Since Anya's death nobody has been able to even say her name around him.

"No you don't." He mumbled.

"Yes... I do!" she cried.

"Did you cry?"

"What?"

"Of course you did. But you don't wake up every morning Willow feeling like you have nothing to live for! My life... my whole life I've never loved anybody as much as I did her and now she's gone. My world, my little blonde witty sarcastic world is buried under miles of rubble all alone and when she died, I may as well have too."

"I know you miss Anya Xander, we all do but this, screaming at little kids in the rain with bloodied hands and getting dangerously drunk isn't the way to deal with your grief."

"And when the love of your life was murdered all you did deal with it" he spat sarcastically. "Y'know what you did Willow, you almost destroyed the world, you tore the skin of another humans beings body, you almost turned Dawn back into a ball of energy and you dismembered Giles viciously. Well I'm sorry to disappoint you Will but I'm not some uber-witch like you. I can't just wave my arms and summon the forces of darkness to kill the people responsible because the people responsible are lying right next to the body of the love of my life, and they'll stay there forever. And there's not a damn thing anybody can do about it. So don't you stand there and act all high and mighty. How dare you."

"That's not fair." Willow mumbled through her tears.

"Well life isn't fair Will."

"Please just tell me how I can make things right please Xander; it kills me to see you like this."

"Y'know what you can do for me Willow?" he responded.

"What?" she asked.

"You can take me back to Sunnydale and push me over the edge of the crater." There was nothing she could say to him after that. He didn't even look at her as he turned back and disappeared into the mist of rain. She sat on that bench for a while. She replayed the conversation in her mind over again and she recalled something he had said, _'Well I'm sorry to disappoint you Will but I'm not some uber-witch like you'._

"He was absolutely right" she thought. Willow was one of the most powerful wiccans in the northern hemisphere and she suddenly got a dangerous idea. She'd considered it once before but knew that it was impossible but Xander said it himself, _'uber-Witch'_. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her back down the street as the mud infested puddles splashed up at her. She entered the magic shop. It wasn't much different from the one in Sunnydale but this one was not as stocked and displayed properly.

"Willow!" called the shop keeper at the sight of her. "How's my favourite regular?"

"Hey Ernie. I need to know where I can find An Urn of Osiris." She requested.


	2. Episode 2: Welcome to Ohio

Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Buffy the vampire slayer, I am just a fan.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8 episode 1  
Welcome to Ohio.  
[The second Part of the Season beginning]

[-] Chapter 1

"What's gotten you so upset? And did you say an Urn of Osiris?" Ernie was bald, short and slightly overweight. His red polo short was stretched and stained and his jeans we tattered at the bottom, the tats draped over a pair of worn black leather pumps with mud around the rim. He was taken back when Willow mentioned she needed an Urn of Osiris so he began playing with his long dark grey beard.

"Nothing, I'm fine but about that Urn..." she continued.

"You must have heard too" Ernie assumed.

"Heard? What d'ya mean? Heard what?" Willow sounded confused.

"Well any witch at your level knows that the resurrection spell that involves the urn of Osiris is difficult, dangerous and largely unsuccessful. Any witch who can float a pencil and loses a loved one instantly comes in here asking if we had any of those urns. I had a few in stocks and I felt Y'know... sympathetic for the brauds. So I sold them the Urn. Most of them didn't even survive the spell and those that did were unsuccessful. And then about a year ago a spike went through the magical community all over the country saying that a witch some were in California successfully completed the spell. Suddenly everybody thought they could do the same, and that's when the dead bodies began turning up in cemeteries. So I've learned my lesson, no more." He explained.

"Ernie listen to me, I've been coming in here every day now for the past two weeks. By the ingredients I've bought from here you know I'm not just another witch. Now either you don't have an Urn in the store of you know where I can find one." Willow sounded threatening and Ernie could have sworn he seen the roots in Willows hair twinge to a shade of black. Ernie paused and argued with himself silently for a moment. Willow was not known for her patience, "**Ernie!"**

"Alright alright jeez, if it were up to me I'd give you the damn thing for free but it aint. But I know a guy..." Ernie began to mumble and stutter a lot after that, sweat dripped from his fore head and he began to quiver slightly.

"Why don't I believe you?" she asked while he was midway into explaining how Willow could get to Romania to find this _'guy'_.

"What, I'm telling you the truth I swear." He leant on the glass of the counter and began to reach for something under it.

"Parralisum Incantontori!" She exclaimed as she held her hand in front of her. Ernie's hand froze and his body did also. He was unable to move his lips or even his jaw. However his eyes rolled around in his skull frantically. They became bloodshot very quickly as he was unable to move his eyelids to blink. Willow sighed and moved round to his side of the counter. He had a hex bag in one hand and a short yet sharp dagger in the other. Willow assumed that the hex bag when thrown over her would disorient her in some manner long enough for Ernie to make his move. She sighed once more and moved back to her previous position in front of the counter. "I appreciate you trying to warn me Ernie but this? Reaching for that knife didn't do you any good now did it. Now I'm going only going to reverse my spell when you start telling me where I can find an Urn." Ernie tried his hardest to keep his eyes focused on Willow so as to not alert her of where his Urn was being kept but Willow eventually caught a glimpse of him as he quickly looked to his right. She looked there also and there was a door labelled "Do not enter, staff only." She smiled at him sarcastically and walked over to the door. It was locked but he'd stupidly and conveniently left a group of keys on top of a cardboard box next to the door. Willow picked up the keys and opened the door. Cleveland's magic box had a bigger inventory space than Sunnydale's so it took Willow a reasonable amount of time to find the urn. There were two of them in fact and each was stored in an individual box at the end of a row of chicken brains. She took each one out of its packaging and carefully placed them both in a bigger cardboard container. She left the room and locked the door behind her; she placed the key in her pocket. Ernie was still frozen in place and blood had begun to pour out of his eyes like tears that streamed down his face. In any other circumstances Willow would have felt guilty for leaving that man in agony but she was completely focused on one thing. She cautiously placed the box on the floor near the exit and walked back behind the counter. She pulled the hex bag from Ernie's grasp and poured its contents on the floor. She was now baffled as to what the bag would have done to her, it was dark magic. She placed a folded piece of paper on the work counter next to the cash register, it was her order. "I want all that delivered to that address and I want it there by Saturday. Unless you want a repeat visit that is." She said threateningly. As she with drawled from the store she mumbled something in Latin under her breathe and closed the door behind her, _'bing'_ went the bell above the frame. He unfroze and crashed to the floor rubbing his eyes.

"I'll get you you bitch"" he exclaimed in the silence of the shop. For the spell Willow planned to cast she needed several litres of innocent blood, candles, and herbs and of course the Urn. Last time she performed this spell she used deer blood but as she was new to the city she didn't know where to find one, so the blood of an innocent pig from the butchers would have to do. But before she could even begin her ritual she needed to acquire a pretty powerful summing spell. Over the last week or so Nicholas had made quite a name for himself in the manor, Dawn and a lot of the other slayers called him 'Hunkolas', Faith however went with 'Nick', Giles went with 'A strikingly charming fellow' and everyone else just called him Nicholas. But Willow disliked Nicholas because he was constantly listening in on private conversations, spending so much time in his room and she couldn't recall a time when he was not wearing his glasses. In the light of recent events Willow called him the weasel or the snake in the grass; she felt his presence in the manor was perverse. But she knew that he knew how to get things and she needed that summoning spell. She loaded the Urn's of Osiris into the trunk of Giles' car and sat herself in the driver's position and made her way onto the familiar streets that led back to Slayer central. She parked outside of the smaller, black bared gates and let herself in. As she walked up the narrow path she spotted him sitting on one of the outside sofas that were placed under one of the windows on the front deck. He sat cross-legged wearing a blue buttoned up shirt and black pants. His hair was spiked as usual with the same sunglasses positioned on his nose with half of a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and dropped the bud onto the wooden deck; he stopped it out with his shoe. He looked up and spotted Willow.

"Well you've been out quite a while, it's almost dark and with this rain you can really worry a person Tabatha. Might I ask where you've spent this fine Thursday afternoon?" He had apparently nick named his fellow housemates just as they had nick named him.

"Okay now that's creepy, what are you stalking me now? I was at the magic shop like every other day." She said coldly. It was obvious by her tone that she didn't like him. He took pleasure from that.

"Yes that may be true but on all of your previous trips you haven't been gone for longer than maybe three quarters of an hour give or take, whereas today it's been around two and a half hours since you left the building."

"You have serious issues my friend, don't you have anything better to do than monitor every living thing that passes through the threshold of this house?"

"Actually" he got up out of his seat and stood facing Willow, "no." He folded his arms across his chest.

"Well then seeing how good you are at your job, has Xander come back yet?"

"Why?"

"Uh, well because he's my best friend and I want to check that he made it home okay. You said it yourself, the weather is awful" she tried to hide her worry behind a week laugh. He didn't fall for it.

"Now what I don't understand is that when I ask where you have been all this time you associate me with stalkers and sex offenders but when you want to know what Mr. Harris has been doing in your absence it is completely normal."

"But Xander and I are best friends." Willow argued.

"Why?" he asked annoyingly.

"Well just because."

"Because of what?"

"Y'know what, enough with the questions, I wanna know what Xander has been doing because he's my best friend and I love him. You don't have that right because we are not best friends Nicholas."

"Are you sure it's that we are not best friends or that you secretly love me as much as you precious Kennedy? Possibly more I would say."

"What! I most certainly- I can't believe- you would even- think that just- I mean c'mon- that's just..."

"You quiver at the sight of me, thank you for proving my suspicions. And nice job by the way with Ernie that shop keeper, you are savage one aren't you. Ah well Mr. Giles beckons me to do his bidding, I must be off." He turned to enter the manor but was pulled back by Willows hand on his arm.

"First of all, HELLO, lesbian. For four years now. Girlfriend is upstairs. You and I are never going to happen. And secondly, how the hell do you know about that? Have you been spying on me?"

"Ah yes but even the bendiest of spoons can be made straight again, with a little time, patience and...Skill. And I know a bit of magic on my part and anybody and everybody who holds residence in this manor is locatable on the liaison to the senor partners' radar."

"First, I never agreed to that and second, my girlfriend has a pierced tongue. Trust me buddy, you can't compete with that."

"Well no you never agreed to anything Tabatha but Miss Summers did. It says so in the contract. Now if there is nothing else of importance you need from me then please allow me to be on my way." He once again turned to slip through that huge wooden threshold.

"Actually, I-um do need a favour, sorta'." She stammered. He sighed and once again turned to face her.

"And the nature of this favour would be...?" he asked impatiently. Willow sat down on the sofa that Nicholas had just stood up from, she invited him to sit back down. If she wanted what she needed from him she would have to play along. She filled him in on the happenings at the magic shop and what she planned to do.

"But for that kind of spell you would need and Urn of Osiris. They're extremely rare." He said taken back by Willow's story.

"I got two of em' in the trunk." She said plainly.

"You must be mistaken Willow" he said in denial.

"For what I had to do to get them they better be real."

"So that's why I sensed you were in danger earlier. You do know that Ernie isn't human?"

"What, how do you know?"

"Well no mere human Ohio shopkeeper has two Urns of Osiris. And even before you can begin your ritual the body you need is buried under miles of rubble. I think it's safe to say your pursuit is impossible" Willow sighed, she felt defeated, "unless you're willing to take a little midnight swim?" Willow looked up at him flustered as to his meaning.

Meanwhile up on the third story Faith had knocked on Buffy's door. "Come in" she called. Faith entered the room. Buffy was sitting on a wooden stool next to an open window. Buffy's window faced the sea and so the sound of the waves hitting the cliff side flooded the room. Buffy was sitting with her legs up into her chest and her arms wrapped around them. She had a mug of something hot perched on top of the window sill and she was wearing a grey hooded jumper with her _'hello sushi'_ pyjama pants on. "Hey Faith" Buffy greeted.

"Hey B, what'cha doin'? Faith asked as she sat on the end of Buffy's bed.

"Honestly, I have no clue. I've done my nightly dose of staring out to the sea dramatically" Buffy said jokingly, "and now I guess I'll just wonder the halls, check on the girls and go to bed."

"B, it's only nine thirty." Faith stated as she laughed at how unconscious Buffy was of the time.

"You can't be serious, it's dark out." Buffy said.

"Yeah, it's been like that for around twenty minutes now."

"I must've fallen asleep in the tub; I thought it was later than this. I guess I'm used to patrolling every night and since we made the potentials into Slayers I haven't had too and so I lost track of time. Anyway did you need something?"

"Yeah I was wondering if I could pick your brain about somethin'..."

"Sure."

"Ya' see back in L.A you know Kate, two doors down?" Buffy nodded, "Well she was so enthusiastic and out spoken but ever since we got here she seems down and defeated. Even when I took her and eight other girls out on patrol with me just after sundown she barely spoke a word. We both know that I aint so good with the mushy gushy stuff so I was wonderin' if you could maybe talk to her or something?" Buffy had also noticed the decline in Kate's attitude since L.A and knew that she only had herself to blame. She told Faith that she'd talk to her but regretted it the moment Faith left the room. She would only make matters worse. She took one last sip from her mug and headed for the door. She stepped out into the hallway and looked down both ends of the corridor. Amalia was sat on one of the balconies at the end of the hall and Buffy waved casually. She wondered the halls of the Manor and checked into a lot of the girls' rooms. Everybody was fine. In any normal situation with any normal person, that would have been fine. But we both know that Buffy was neither normal or ever in a normal situation. She thought to herself about how sharing the burden of being a slayer would help with the loneliness that also comes free of charge but it never really goes away. Willow had Kennedy, Faith had Robin, Giles had his library back and now with an office to boot, Xander had... well... whiskey and Buffy had nobody. And yet she was content with that, oddly the feeling felt right.

"Maybe Andrew put something in the food" she thought as she pondered her growing insanity. She decided to avoid her promised talk with Kate... for now. Instead she made her way down to Giles' office. She knocked and opened the door but the laptop was off, curtains closed and all books were back on their shelves. She checked his room but he wasn't there either. The only other place Giles could stand to be in the entire building was the library so she made her way to the grand staircases that lead down to the entrance hall. On the way she past Kennedy, Rona and Simmone as they finished up filling the old classrooms with desks and book shelves for the girls to do their school work or just hung out. She saw Xander enter one of the bathrooms, she thought to call out to him, but before she could part her lips he shut the door behind him. She got to the top of the stairs; quite a lot of the girls were sitting around the dining table eating buttered toast with Andrew while others gathered around the entrance hall television and watched the local popular shows. She twirled herself around the end of the staircases banister and headed for the closed door. The library was just beyond that. Even though it was only a fraction of Sunnydale high school's library Giles found familiarity in there. She pushed open the glass door and spotted Dawn with her nose in a book while Giles simply sat himself in a computer chair and spun around whilst staring at the ceiling. "Buffy" Dawn called as she noticed that her sister had entered the room.

"Hey Dawnie" she said as she walked over to sit next to her.

"Is something wrong Buffy?" Giles asked.

"Wrong, why would something be wrong? I'm just, I guess I'm just... bored." She said as though it was absurd. Giles suddenly began to laugh hysterically. His glasses fell crooked on his nose, he kicked his legs in the air and he held his stomach as though it were about to burst. Dawn, at the sight of Giles in hysterics, began to do the same. Even Buffy after that, she didn't even know what she was laughing at. Giles got up out of his chair and leaned against a wall to try and calm himself but couldn't, the fact that Buffy was bored was ludicrous to him. Dawn just laughed at how Giles was laughing and Buffy laughed because the situation made it funny. Giles even got tears in his eyes. Eventually he calmed down and sat back down in his chair. "I-I-I don't understand how tha-that was so-so fun-funny" Buffy stuttered through what was left of her giggles. Giles wiped his eyes with the cloth he used for his glasses and turned to face Buffy, his face had turned bright red with laughter.

"In all my-my years of-of knowing you Bu-Buffy I cannot recall a time when you have actually said that to-to-to me."Giles said as he began to laugh again.

"There was always something for you to do though Buffy, Y'know your routine was get up, breakfast, stop an apocalypse, bed. Now that it's not just you I guess you have the time and freedom to be... bored." Dawn informed as she also recovered from hysterics.

"Yeah I guess. What are ya' reading Dawn?" Buffy asked even though she didn't really care.

"Wow you really are bored, well I've been reading up on the history of this place, apparently it was a boarding school in the 1790's but was set on fire and even further back than that there is a reference to a slayer called Carissa Blaire who killed some demon. See, you're not the only bored Summers girl in the house" Dawn laughed.

"Actually it was an earthquake that caused the fire; also it was the 1890's not the 1790's. The Slayers name was Cassandra not Carissa and it was a warlock not a demon but she only managed to strip his powers before he took her down." She said plainly as though it were common knowledge. Giles and Dawn both looked at each other in mild shock; they found it odd that Buffy was so informed on the Building that they had lived in for a few weeks now. They then both gazed at her, "what?" she said.

[-] Chapter 2

In the meantime while Buffy babbled to Giles and Dawn about what she knew of the building, Willow left her room to find Nicholas as they agreed about three hours earlier. It was around five minutes past midnight so she snuck out of bed and headed for the door. She stepped on a creaky floor board and froze. Kennedy tossed and turned in bed and would not settle, she opened her eyes and spotted Willow fully dressed. "What's happening, what's going on?" she asked as she sat up right in bed.

"Nothing, go back to bed" Willow tried to say convincingly.

"Will..." Kennedy said impatiently.

"I'm going to take Xander somewhere, I won't be long I promise." She lied.

"Okay, be careful." Kennedy advised as she clambered back into the bed sheets. Willow left the room and slid the door shut behind her. She made her way down to the entrance hall; everybody was in bed. She looked over the banister of one of the grand staircases and noticed Nicholas standing by the closed door, he was tapping his foot impatiently and had his arms folded. He still wore his sunglasses. She silently stepped down the stairs to meet him.

"Tabatha, your ten minutes late" he said angrily.

"I know, sorry." She apologized," I woke Kennedy by accident and I had to make up an excuse why I was fully dressed this late."

"Several Slayers are out on patrol so we only have half an hour to get in and get out before anybody suspects a thing." Nicholas said confidently.

"Just out of curiosity, what exactly are we doing?" Willow asked nervously.

"Well I'm right in believing that you came to me tonight in the hopes of acquiring a powerful summoning spell to begin the ritual, correct?" Willow nodded her head. "Then you came to the right place. As you know the basement just off of the laundry room has been magically sealed, it was I whom sealed it. The reason the basement needed sealing was because of extensive water damage. When my firm acquired the building 8 months ago apparently a bone head plumber burst a pipe down there and the water level reaches just about 1 and a half meters off the ground. On you I would guess that is just below your neck line. Now I can unseal the basement door long enough for you to find what you need."

"And just what is it down there that's going to give me what I need?"

"If memory serves a client of Wolfram and Hart, which was housed here before all of you, requested we bring him numerous Babylonian summoning hex bags. Its powerful stuff Tabatha, maybe out of your league perhaps but I find myself curious whether you will actually succeed."

"How big is the basement and were will I find them?" Willow asked, she sighed at the mention of water, she'd never liked the pool at school and the sea freaked her out.

"The basement is the same size as the manor itself in perimeter, except it has no walls. The boxes down there are in fact magical and protected so you will not be able to open them, I will teleport you in there, then you will have fifteen minutes to find what you need and then I will teleport you back out. Since it was I who magically protected them, only I can reverse the spell. After that I will have no further part in the matter except knowledge of the end result. Its pitch black in there, how do you plan to see?"

"Magic." She conjured herself a tiny ball of light, it was easy to sustain for long periods of time and it was supposed to help its conjurer find what he or she or even... it is looking for. She followed Nicholas through the corridor behind the closed door and down into the wash room. The walls in there were just plain grey brick and about seven of the fifteen laundry machines gurgled as they cleaned the girls' clothes. And there it was; the basement door. It was relatively small in fact, and even though the door was old, the handle was brand new. She turned to face him and to ask how he planned to get her in there but he was already mumbling Latin words to himself under his breath.

Cleveland cemetery, this was what she was talking about. It had its differences sure from L.A and Sunnydale but there was no shortage of demons and vamps to dust and bust. It was Rona and Vi's turn to take the girls out on patrol, they were a lot more protective of the girls because they knew how scary and frightening it was to be told you were chosen, and so were sixteen other girls. Vi, Rona and Faith had initially brought all of the new Slayers out on patrol and divided them into three teams. Rona was the head of one team while Vi and Faith was heads of the other two. They split up into different cemeteries all over Cleveland. There were actually a grand total of thirteen of them but tonight they would just have to leave the remaining ten to defend themselves. Faith called Rona on her cell and told her she would have to skip out early, something to do with asking for Buffy's advise. Vi called Rona about nineteen minutes after saying that her team had done a sweep of the cemetery and dusted a few vamps and that they were also heading home. Rona huddled up her team.  
"Okay you guys were the last ones out here, and so far we haven't dusted anything. I think we need to split up. Alex, Bethany, Joy and Amalia, pick a partner and spread out. Protect each other and remember constant vigilance." Rona advised. Rona had only now taken her cast off her arm from the battle about two months ago at Caleb's wine vineyard. But she was still scared from the battle down in the Hellmouth. Buffy had only just now agreed to let her out of the building to fight so Rona was just itching for something to get her teeth into... so to speak. She told the girls to meet her back at the cemetery entrance in fifteen minutes. The girls paired up and went off in their separate ways. Rona wondered around but nothing seemed to be happening, "the night I get out and I get stuck with the only cemetery in the world with no demons or vamps, figures" she thought. The mist rolled in and the clouds over shadowed the moon above, a twig snapped somewhere in the hedges behind Rona but before she could make a jump at the silhouette in the trees, Amalia's scream echoed throughout the cemetery. Rona quickly changed direction and set off at break neck speed towards the epicentre of the screams. She found herself in a clearing of trees and empty graves that looked soon to be filled. She surveyed her surrounding but it was too dark to see. "Amalia!" she exclaimed in panic. From behind a crypt a man entered the clearing. He clapped in mockery as he walked. He wore a dark red and black suit and had shaven brown her. He stopped about 10ft in front of Rona and revealed a short cane he used to balance himself. He certainly did not look old, no older that forty that is. But he walked as though he was 80 and leant heavily on his Cane. "Where is Amalia?" Rona asked with scorn.

"Well well, isn't this interesting." The man said as he ignored the question. "Which one might you be then, pray tell?"

"Where is she?" Rona exclaimed as she started at him.

"Ah ah ah" he said as he tutted and shuck his index finger from side to side in Rona's direction. She stopped. "I wouldn't do that if I were you, unless you don't want your precious Slayers back."

"Who're you, why are you doing this?" she questioned frantically.

"Me? That's not important but what I want however? Good things come to those whom wait. Are you Faith or Kennedy perhaps?"

Rona was confused as to how he knew of her friends but he had Amalia so she knew she had to co-operate with him... or it. "Rona, my name it Rona." She said timidly.

"Ah yes, you were so badly hurt weren't you, and the night the slayer lets you out you go and lose all your precious Slayers in a vampire filled cemetery and to a man like me" he tutted once more.

"What? This has to be the deadest cemetery in the world. There are no vamps here." The man grinned at her and clicked his fingers. Heavy footsteps colliding with the hard mud ground echoed behind Rona. She turned around. There must have been twenty five of them standing in a perfect circle around the clearing; you would probably have counted more if you took the time to. A lot of the vampires were covered in mud which Rona took to mean that the man behind her had taken them immediately after they clawed their way out of their coffin, brought them here and waited for the girls. Only a handful was dressed normally. Only around fourteen of the vamps had something in common though, they each restrained one of the girls while another covered their mouth so they couldn't scream. Unlike the others Rona could tell that Joy put up a fight when they were attacked as she was beaten and bleeding and it took three vampires to restrain her. Rona could only count seven of the eight Slayers in her team. She turned to face the man. "Let them go!"

"Um, no" the man stated plainly.

"Where is Amalia?" she asked, she felt defeated and powerless.

"Safe, for now." He replied.

"What do you want?"She asked cautiously.

"I want you to take a message to the Slayer." He said

"And you'll give me my girls back?" she asked.

"In a sense" he grinned. He clicked his fingers and the vampires behind Rona growled. She quickly turned to see a large smirk on each vamps faces'. They each plunged their fangs into the necks and wrists of the girls. Rona screamed "**NO!**" and started at the vampires. Two more appeared quickly out of the darkness and restrained Rona in place, she tried to fight back, she wriggled and pulled but it was useless. They made her watch as the girls in her care were viciously murdered. Joy was the last to hit the ground. The two vampires restraining Rona released her and she fell to the floor. Tears flooded down her face in anger and frustration. She watched as the vampires dragged the bodies of the slayers back into the darkness of the trees. She turned to face the man. He was grinning soullessly.

**"So that's it huh?"** she was in hysterics, beating the floor with her fists and her hair flying out through the air above her head. **"Am I next, is that what's going to happen now, you can certainly try you pompous bastard but I will not go down easy!"** She got up from the floor and began to run at the man. She was stopped though before she could take another step. Amalia emerged from behind the same crypt that the man had just moments ago. She ran past the man and straight at Rona and jumped right into her arms. Rona picked her up and squeezed her tightly.

"I'll be seeing you." the man said as he faded into the mist.

Willow quickly found herself submerged in ice cold water that reached halfway up to her neck in a vast, dark open space. The only light was under the water were her hand was. It was so bizarre, just a second ago she was standing right next to Nicholas but she could hear him from the stirs behind her chanting to maintain the teleportation spell. "Gods and Goddesses of the hereafter I implore you. Use the light to help me find may way, so let it be" she quivered. The little ball of light instantly got brighter and shot from her hand. She watched it travel quickly to her left under the water, it must have gone pretty far because it became just a small dim glow in the distance. She waddled her way through the ice water in the direction of the glow. She bumped into floating chairs and boxes along the way but she quickly became numb from the cold. She made it to the light but it was on top of a small crate next to Willow's feet. She was dreading this part; she had to submerge her head below the water to reach the box. She made several attempts but as the water approached her jaw she would pull back, she inevitably mustered her courage and took the plunge, it hurt the most when the water entered her ears but they numbed twice as quicker as the rest of her body parts. She grabbed the box and pulled her head out of the water as fast as humanly possible. She now knew that she had to make her way to the stairs back the way she came. Now with her hair wet she knew that she couldn't make it without passing out from the cold, she gathered what strength she could and bellowed "Nicholas!"  
Before she knew it she was laying face down on the laundry room floor. Nicholas helped Willow to her feet and she grabbed a blanket from the laundry pile and wrapped it tightly around her. Nicholas held the box in one hand and waved the other over it whilst mumbling a Babylonian spell simultaneously. The box glowed slightly put that might have been a figment of Willow's imagination; she was pretty out of it. Nicholas peered his head over the lid of the box to reveal three small pouches. The pouch itself was a dark blue and wrapped with a yellow string. He handed her the box and said "let me know how it turns out, okay Tabatha?"

"Sure" she said she pulled the box into the blanket with her, "An Nicholas, thank you. I owe you one." He turned to face her and allowed his sunglasses to drop to the point of his nose and reveal his light green eyes.

"Yes... I'll hold you to that." He adjusted his glasses and exited the room. It must have been about 1 am in the morning but all Willow could think about was getting out of that room, getting a cup of hot chocolate from the kitchen and climbing back into bed with her lover. But she would have to pit her plans on hold for another night because as the microwave bell rung a huge bang from the Entrance Hall door echoed throughout the manor. **"Buffy!"** screamed a voice. Even Faith whose room was on the fifth floor heard the shriek from below. She jumped out of bed with Robin and they made their way out into the hall. All the girls had heard it as well as they all head their heads poking out of their bedroom thresholds. "Girls go back inside and go back to sleep, everything is fine. Now!" Robin reassured loudly. They met Buffy on the third floor and began descending the stairs. Even Xander had gotten out of bed, well Faith assumed that but he was still fully clothed and had a whisky in his hand. None of the new Slayers except Kennedy and Vi were allowed downstairs. Andrew trailed behind them. Rona was pacing up and down the dining room table while Amalia was cowering on the sofas to the left. Dawn must have still been in the library as she burst into the entrance hall, fully clothed, from the closed door.

"Rona, what's wrong, what happened, where are the girls? Buffy asked sleepily. Rona just looked at Buffy, the fear in her eyes and the guilt was the only thing Buffy needed to know what happened. Faith saw it too.

"How many?" Faith asked.

"Ni-nin-nine of, of us, t-twenty five of the-them. Maybe more." Rona stuttered. Willow took her blanket off of her and wrapped it around Amalia. Buffy dragged Rona over to the sofa and sat her down. Everybody else either took a vacant seat or crowded around. Faith sat next Rona on the sofa while Buffy sat on the other side, Willow sat with Amalia and Giles sat next to them. Andrew perched himself on the coffee table and everybody else crowded around.

"What happened Rona, I mean when I left you and Vi in the field everything seemed fine. Did something? Is the first back?" Faith asked worried.

"No, the first is gone, well he wasn't there anyway..." Rona began. She told the story from were Vi had called and said she was going home. She informed Buffy about the man and how that the killing of the seven Slayers was a message for her and how he referred to her as **the **slayer. After she finished the room fell silent, almost as though an invisible force kept their lips together. Giles broke the silence,

"Yes, well, I, um" Buffy cut him off before he could form his sentence.

"You let them go off alone?" she said angrily.

"I-I-I-I-I-I-I thought that" Buffy cut her off just like she did Giles.

"No Rona you didn't think, and it's cost seven innocent girls their lives!" she exclaimed.

"Chill it B!" Faith said shocked at how angry Buffy was. Rona's tears began to well up in her eyes. Buffy ignored Faith's comment.

"Get upstairs." Buffy ordered Rona.

"Buffy I"-

"Now, Rona!" Rona sped off towards the stairs and she ascended up them. Buffy turned to face Willow. "Will, is she okay?" she was talking about Amalia.

"She's pretty shaken up, Kennedy and I will take her up stairs and clean her off and put her in bed." Willow added.

"Here, let me" Xander interjected.

"Um, sure... okay" Willow agreed whilst confused. Amalia took Xander's' had and followed him upstairs.

[-] Chapter 3

Since Anya's death Xander had isolated himself from his friends. His daily routine was the same every day, wake up at 1:00 pm, eat Andrews pancakes, go to the liquor store, sit on the bench outside until all hours of the night, come home at 9:00 pm and then go to bed again around 3:00pm. The gang just assumed he had done his daily routine alone but when he offered to take Amalia upstairs they remembered times when they saw them walking with each other, eating together and talking amongst themselves. It all started like this.  
About a week ago, Xander had just come back to the manor at around 11:00 pm from a long days work on the liquor store bench. He was drunk, wet and found everything hugely funny. He opened the front doors to the entrance hall and groggily made his way to the stairs. Amalia couldn't sleep that night and was lying down in the lounge behind the closed door; she thought that she was the only one up and when she heard loud muttering and weak hysterical laughter outside, she got up to see who it was. Her first thoughts when she spotted Xander on the third step of the stairs were "Oh, it's just the drunk man on the fourth floor who throws towels at the girls when they aren't being quiet enough at night." Amalia wiped the sleep from her eyes and followed him quietly up the stairs. He was muttering loudly under his breath, she managed to make out the words Sunnydale, some girl called Cordie and a craving for a double meat medley. He got almost all the way up when he dropped his liquor all over the red stream of carpet that was sown into the stairs. He turned, without spotting Amalia, and bent down to pick the bottle back up again. Naturally as he was Xander, he tripped and went staggering down the stairs. Amalia luckily wasn't too far behind him and managed to catch him. It was a lucky thing that Amalia had the strength of a slayer otherwise Xander would have knocked her off her feet to her possible death at the bottom. She helped him to his feet; it seemed his stumble knocked his drunken brain into a coma so that his sober side was all that was left. He shook his head from side to side and looked down at her, "Th-than-thank you." he stuttered, "Amalia right?"

"Yeah" she replied. She helped him up the stairs.

"Why are you up so late, it must be about midnight right?" he asked.

"I couldn't sleep, bad dreams I guess."

"What kinda' dreams? Like standing naked in front of your whole class in an assembly when you have to give a big speech? Coz I've been there my friend. Or bad dreams like demons and apocalypses?"

"Well I guess... neither, I dreamt of this girl. Or I dreamt I was this girl I dunno'. I was a lot older, maybe around twenty seven. I was wearing a long flowing white dress and a necklace with a cross on it. My hair was black, long and curly. And I was standing on the front lawn outside of the house. I was giving some big pep rally speech to a bunch of men and women who were dressed in armour and had swords and stuff. Then this man appeared out of nowhere and hurled some purple static thing in my face and then... then I woke up." Even though Amalia only knew Xander from overhearing what other girls had said about him, mostly the words they used were drunk and loud but she liked him when he was sober, he was easy to talk to.

"Yeah well way back when, when the Buffster was the one and only slay gal she used to have dreams about demons and vampires and stuff and it usually meant some big evil was coming. But from what it sounds like you dreamt of a past slayer. Buffy did mention that a slayer lived in this house but I was kinda' out of it. How old are you anyway?"

"I turn fourteen in November." She said reluctantly. They reached the fourth floor and Xander thanked Amalia once again and went into his room. Amalia went another floor up to her bedroom that she shared with Vi and went to bed also.  
The next night when Xander came in late, Amalia had stayed up waiting for him. He didn't fall down the stairs that night so he still remained drunk, but he treated Amalia like she was his age whereas everybody else thought of her as the youngest and most vulnerable slayer. So every night she would wait for Xander and he also looked forward to seeing her, she somehow eased his pain over Anya, she was his newest best friend. Then last night when Xander came home and Amalia was not sitting on the couch waiting for him he was worried he had said something to piss her off or she just eventually lost interest. So he went to bed. And then when he heard what happened with Rona he was worried. Amalia told him everything that had happened that night and she couldn't stress enough that there was nothing Rona could do to save the others. Amalia asked Xander to tell Buffy what she told him but he was reluctant to do so. Xander had not had an actual conversation with Buffy since they stood in the hallway with Willow and Giles back in Sunnydale. He blamed her, maybe more than he would admit. Possibly more than he begrudged blaming Willow. _Buffy was last out of the school that day, she could have done something, anything. Maybe dragged her body out or maybe even protected Anya. The slayer is supposed to protect everybody right? Did Anya not factor into the category of everybody?_ He thought to himself many times before he would go to sleep. He made his way back down to the entrance hall, it was late so the chandelier light was out but the wall lamps remained on. Everybody was talking amongst themselves so he just sat in the corner. He made numerous attempts to interject in the conversation and tell the room about Amalia's side of the story but he chickened out. He took a leap of faith. "_Willow, Willow can you hear me?"_ he thought. She turned to him abruptly and confusedly.

_"Yeah?"_ she replied telepathically. He told Willow what Amalia had told him.

_"She asked me to tell Buffy not to be too hard on Rona."_

"I think Buffy understands that Rona was in a tough position, she's angry because Rona shouldn't have let the girls go off alone. And why are you telling me? Buffy is standing like five ft away from you."

"I haven't talked to Buffy properly since we left Sunnydale."

"And you haven't talked to me since the day I saw you by the liquor store. Talk to Buffy."

"Y'know what, forget it." Xander got out of his seat and went through the closed door to the kitchen.

"What d'ya think Will?" asked Buffy in conclusion to what she was saying to the rest of the room that was listening. "Willow? Hello, anybody in there? Willow!" she said louder.

"Huh, what? Yeah cat fish is an odd type of sea creature." Willow said trying to sound like she was listening by saying the first thing that came into her head.

"Have you listened to a word that I've said?" she asked impatiently.

"I'm sorry Buffy, I was kinda' out of it."

"Yeah, it's okay. I get that it's late. What I said was why don't you in the morning do a locater spell for the girls' bodies and Faith, Kennedy, Vi and I will go and get them, maybe bring them back here and have a burial in the yard?"

"I can't, I have something to do tomorrow; could we do this earlier, or now even?"

"What happens tomorrow?" Buffy asked concerned.

"I um have a new lead on a slayer out of town, I'll be gone all day but this is pretty important so I'd rather do this now." Willow lied.

"Well... okay sure. I guess we'll go and get dressed and everybody else... um go to bed or... something." Willow, Buffy, Faith, Kennedy and Vi went up stairs to get properly dressed while Robin and Andrew followed Xander into the kitchen. They met up on the front porch outside the manor and they climbed into Giles' car. Faith drove, Buffy rode shotgun and Vi and Kennedy sat either side of Willow in the back seat. Willow did her locator spell there. Her goddess instincts told her that the Slayers where still in the cemetery that Rona had described but the locator spell said the bodies were half way across town. Something has been seriously wrong with her powers for a while now. They pulled up in Giles' car just across the street from the entrance to the cemetery. Buffy decided that since Willow's spell didn't help at all they would go back to the cemetery and see if Faith could track the man Rona described. Kennedy and Vi went off together to the west, Faith went to the east and Buffy went north. Willow remained in the car but was in contact with them all via telepathy. She was trying to lead them to the clearing but trying to mystically oversee the cemetery was unusually hard. She managed to zone in on the clearing but only for a brief second. Faith was the closest.

_"Faith, you're the closest it's just north of your location." _Willow said to Faith telepathically. Faith jumped at the sound of Willow's voice inside her head.

_"Jeez red, you almost made me go all kung-fu on that tree man! Okay I'll speed up my pace, I'll let you know when I'm there, tell the others."_ She replied.

_"Buffy?" _Willow asked telepathically.

_"Kinda' busy here Will!" _Buffy replied. She was overwhelmed by three vampires. She was backed into a corner; two of the vamps grabbed her and threw her at a musty old crypt. They grabbed her again and pinned her against it. The third walked over to her and threw continues punches at her face, even though she wriggled as hard as she could she could not break free. The third vampire attempted a high kick; Buffy, instead of breaking free, pulled the two vampires together so they head-butted each other and were whacked by the third vampires high kick. The two vamps lost their grip and while they were down Buffy pulled two nearby branches off of the floor and staked them simultaneously. The remaining vamp put up a good fight, high kick, left punch, right punch, head-butt and scissor kicks but Buffy's guard was impeccably good. She caught one of his punches and twirled him round sending him tumbling over a tomb stone. He staggered to his feet but was to slow, Buffy staked him hard and fast. _"Okay will what's the 911?"_She thought.

_"Faith's closing in on the clearing; you have to go west, and Buffy? Run."_ Willow advised. "Vi, can you hear me?"

_"Loud and clear, what's the sitch?"_ Vi replied.

_"Faith and Buffy are on their way to the clearing, you have to go back in the direction you came, hurry!"_  
Faith got there first; there was nothing there except blood stained grass on the edge of a line of trees. Faith spotted Rona's description of the crypt and she checked it out. Before she could get to check around the back of the crypt, Buffy had run at breakneck speed into the centre of the clearing.

"Faith?" Buffy called.

"Yeah B, I'm over here, you gotta see this." Faith said.  
Buffy met Faith behind the crypt where she was standing motionless with her arms crossed across her chest. Bethany's body was positioned on the cold grass in front of the back of the crypt. Her blue sweater was drenched in her own blood and her skin had turned grey. Her eyes were frozen open and the brown colour that once inhabited them had dissolved leaving an icy blank stare. Her hands were missing... or not; they had been thrown across the cemetery; Buffy could see them near a ditch around 20ft away. What Buffy found confusing was the pentagram drawn in blood on the crypt wall. It was fresh blood, maybe Bethany's but it's doubtful; she'd been dead for a few hours now. In the centre of the pentagram was a dream catcher. Relatively small but still, Buffy and Faith were baffled. "Willow, are you getting this?" Buffy asked aloud.  
_"Is that a dream catcher?"_ Willow replied into both Buffy's' and Faiths' mind.  
"Looks that way red," Faith stated. "Where are Vi and Kennedy?"

_"They got held up, they'll be there soon."_ Willow said. Faith un-folded her arms and walked towards the crypt.

"Red I'll take it off its hook and bring it to you... whoa" she abruptly stepped back and watched the crypt. The blood drawn pentagram began to turn slowly in a spiral on the tomb. Buffy and Faith took on a defensive stance and watched the crypt in fear and confusion. It turned and spun for around thirty seconds before Bethany's dead body let out a piercing high pitch screech. Buffy and Faith fell to the knees and covered their ears. The crypt began to crack and crumble as the pentagram continued to spin. It stopped precipitously and the blood turned from a shade of dark red to a bright purple glow. It abruptly began to spin again. Bethany stopped screaming and looked at Faith. She opened her mouth and a flash of bright purple light, just like the pentagrams, shot at Faith knocking her a few ft back and unconscious. Bethany's corpse crumbled into a pile of ash. The pentagram began to spin again. There was nothing Buffy could do; she just called out to Willow silently in her mind. Faith was lying face down in the dirt when she was suddenly enveloped in a purple flux of energy that originated from the pentagram. Faith laid perfectly still even though the flux looked painful. Faith began to wake up and the flux dissolved into the dark sky above. Buffy looked back to the crypt; there was no trace of the pentagram or the dream catcher.

"Okay... now I'm pissed." Faith exclaimed. Faith stood up and Buffy spotted a burn on the upper left side of her leather jacket.

"Faith, your jacket!" Buffy said sounding alarmed.

"What, my jacket?" Faith began frantically undressing until she was only wearing her pants, shoes and bra. Faiths back was enflamed and it seemed to originate from her tattoo.

"How long have you had that tattoo?" Buffy asked worryingly.

"I don't have a tattoo on my back B, just my arm and wrist. You're trippin."

"No, Faith I'm serious stay still, it looks like a... oh god."

"B what is it, some demon head or something?"

"No... It's a...it's a... dream catcher." Buffy stammered.  
Faith tried bending over backwards to see her new imprinted tattoo but she wasn't...**that** flexible. They met Kennedy and Vi as they were taking on several vampires, it looked like an ambush; like the vampires were making sure that they didn't get to Faith and Buffy. The four of them finished the rest of the vamps off and met up with Willow by the car, she was pacing up and down the sidewalk. Willow spotted them and embraced Kennedy tightly. "What happened, the last thing I heard was Faith telling me she was going to pick the dream catcher off the wall and then I lost all contact and there was this weird glow and..." She began to rant on and on. On the ride home, Faith and Buffy described in great detail and depth what had happened since they left Willow at the car. Willow guessed that the sorcerer used Bethany's body as a host for some kind of essence and when it shot Faith with the energy it served its purpose and dissolved but what its purpose was and the significance of the dream catcher was a complete mystery. But Faiths new tattoo would have to be tomorrow's problem. If she was going to get to the Sunnydale crater, she would have to leave now. Willow swapped places with Faith and she drove them home. The previous night Willow had packed the blood, the urn, various candles and the hex bags in the trunk of Giles' car. She pulled up just outside of the private roads leading to the manor next to the main gate.

"Okay guys I'll see around this time tomorrow" Willow said innocently with a smile. Everybody had already walked up to the main gate but Buffy only had one foot out of the car when she heard what Willow said.

"Will it must be around 5:00 am, surely you could wait until sunrise?" Buffy advised.

"Well yeah but this girl is in Indiana so I better leave now so I don't arrive at an Y'know... inappropriate time." She lied. Buffy looked at her sceptically, she wasn't convinced that Willow was actually going to recruit a new Slayer but Willow never lied.

"She must have a good reason" Buffy thought. "Well at least take somebody with you, Kennedy or Simmone?" Buffy asked concerned.

"I'll be fine really Buffy. If you need me I'll be on my cell." Buffy studied her for a moment, usually Willow couldn't hold a lie this long but she seemed intent on whatever it was she was doing.

"Okay Will. Be careful and I'll be waiting here exactly twenty four hours from now, okay?"

"Buffy don't worry, I'll be okay."

"Be safe."

"You too."

It had been just under a month since Buffy and the girls made the trip from California to Ohio; except they had had seven more girls going than there would have been if they all were going back. But it was just Willow, all alone on an empty highway at 5:35 in the morning. Willow questioned her ability to do this spell, or that it was even the right thing to do. If she's anything like Buffy was when Willow resurrected her then the repercussions might be just as bad, or worse. What if it doesn't even work and all of this is for nothing? The sun rose and Willow still had fifty-seven miles to drive. Dawn had broken the radio years ago so the silence was deafening.  
_'fifty-seven miles'_  
_'forty-seven miles'  
'thirty-seven miles'  
'twenty-seven miles'  
'seventeen miles'  
'seven miles'  
'three miles'  
'two miles'  
'one mile'  
__**'Welcome to Sunnydale! Home of the Razor Backs!'**__  
_  
Willow spotted the familiar road and road sign, which had not fallen over the edge, where they had all clambered off the yellow school bus two months ago. The cacti were still there along with the vast sand and of course the jaw opening crater that was all that remained of the infamous Sunnydale Hellmouth. By the time she reached the Hellmouth crater it was dark, around 10:00 pm.  
Willow took the ingredients she needed to begin the ritual. She poured the blood into the urn of Osiris and laid out eight black Hecate candles, four on each side of her and set them alight. First thing was first, the summoning hex bags. She got up and walked over to the trunk of the car and picked out the box. She kneeled down back into her position by the candles and began to chant in Babylonian. She stopped abruptly and turned around at the sound of shoes colliding with the hazardous highway concrete.

"**Witch...**" echoed a voice ominously.


	3. Episode 3: Reasoning

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I am just a fan)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, episode 2  
Reasoning

[-] Chapter 1

"Who's there?" she called out. She could see nothing but the old road and the silence of the wind blowing through her red hair. "Seriously, I am one bad ass Wicca!" Still nothing; she could sense something though. Eventually she assumed that her senses were still messed up and continued with her Babylonian summoning spell.

_**"Witch…" **_echoed the voice again. She turned around quickly and got to her feet.

"Okay, now I'm pissed. Who's there? What the…?"  
The sky above her turned from pitch-black to the most nauseating whitest color imaginable. The ground beneath her feet transformed from hard pavement to… well fresh air. It was like she was floating; or her feet were numb. The crater filled up with an ocean of white just like the sky did. She looked down at herself, _"was I wearing this a second ago?"_ she thought. A couple of seconds ago she had her hair tied up in a pony tail and wore a white t-shirt and jeans, but she was just wearing a thin white dress. Wind was blowing though, that suggested she was still on the planet. She was trapped in a vast area of bright white. Maybe not trapped, she could have walked for miles but would still be surrounded by the white. It was boundless, utter boundless; an infinite expanse of white nothingness. She heard it again,

_**"Witch…" **_she turned around, but could not make heads or tails of what direction she was facing. She could make out a silhouette in the distance. He wore worn dark black jeans, a plain back t-shirt with a plain red button shirt over it. His hair was spiked. He walked towards her, she squinted at him to try and make out his face.

"Where am I?" Willow asked.

"I believe your people call it... purgatory" replied the figure.

"Oz?" she asked whilst squinting still. Oz looked down at himself and played curiously with his fingers. "Oz is that you?"

"Is it Oz whom you see before you, witch?" Oz asked ruddily and in the third person.

"What are you talking about Oz? Last I heard you were in L.A, what are you doing here?"

"What do you perceive to be **here** witch?" Oz asked.

"Why are you calling me that? My name is Willow. We have to get out of here." Willow voiced while she reached out for Oz's hand. He didn't respond. He shook his finger at her tauntingly and began pacing in a circle around her.

"You have angered me for the last time; at first I found your rituals amusing and entertaining. But I am a force not to be toyed with witch." He declared.

"You're not Oz. Who are you?" she demanded.

"My appearance is not of my own accord. I am only whom you perceive me to be."

"That doesn't even make sense!" she exclaimed in frustration.

"I am more than you will ever be; I am a force that you can't even conceive of. My being shapes the very fabric of your reality and you will show me some respect witch!" Willow coward as Oz, or whatever was in Oz's form, bellowed angrily at her outburst.

"So if you're not Oz, then can I ask who you are and why you've brought me here?"

"I did not just bring you here, you brought yourself here by your own actions of late witch."

"Which were…?"

"Your insolence is astounding." Oz laughed, "what might your name be witch?"

"You don't know my name? I thought that you had been watching me." Oz growled in anger because of her smug humor, "My name is Willow, Willow Rosenberg. Am I aloud to know yours?" She asked cautiously.

"My name is O…"- He was cut off by another set off footsteps entering into the bright abyss. Willow turned to the direction of the noise. Her hair was brown, straight and breast-length. She wore a purple sweater and black skirt.

"Tara?" Willow asked frantically. Tara studied Willow for a second, surveyed her appearance and the tone of her voice.

_"The witch is saddened by my present being"_ Tara thought, or whatever was wearing Tara thought. "The witch is conflicted, easily swayed by what appears to be when, at her level, she should know better." Tara announced. "I see you started without me dear brother."

"I couldn't help myself." Oz replied with a smile. Tara joined in on Oz's pace around Willow.

"You're not Tara. Please, can somebody tell me what the hell I'm doing here?" Willow exclaimed again. Tara stopped dead in front of her. She tilted her head to the side with a blank expression. She lifted her right hand and struck Willow with the back of it. She was sent hurtling in the opposite direction until she crash-landed on the hard yet transparent ground. Willow staggered to her feet; eyes closed and spat blood from her mouth. She opened her eyes to see how much she had spat out but it wasn't there; nothing was. Tara and Oz were already circling her again. Willow began to panic and shut her eyes tight. She hectically recited every defensive and offensive spell she knew in her mind and began to invoke the name of Hecate. "Hecate" she said aloud, "I implore you…"- She was cut off by the sound of Tara frantically laughing.

"I can't help you now witch." Tara said.

"Hecate?" Willow asked in shock.

"In the flesh… so to speak, I would like you to meet my brother… Osiris." She said gesturing her arm towards Oz.

Willow began, "Oh my…"-

"God?" Oz interrupted. The space fell silent. Hecate and Osiris continued to circle Willow. She was terrified. Trapped in purgatory with two of the most powerful mystical daemons. What did they want with her? Why did they bring her here? How could she have possibly angered them so much? "All things in good time" Osiris announced. He had heard what she was thinking.

"If she had started her ritual we would have had no choice but to abide. We have been careless with this one brother." Hecate acknowledged.

"Yeah, just out of curiosity, how did you know that I was going to perform another Osiris resurrection ritual?" Willow asked confused.

"I believe his name was Ernie, witch." She replied.

_"Damn!"_ Willow thought.

"She does not know of what she has done" said Hecate.

"She must be shown" Osiris agreed. The area began to spin at an accelerated speed. Hecate and Osiris held there hands out in front of them and abruptly stopped pacing. The white got whiter and whiter and whiter until Willow was forced to shut her eyes tight to protect them.  
She could see from behind her eyelids that the glow of purgatory had dimmed; almost blackened. The air that she had her feet on was replaced by an oil stained expanse of concrete. It was night too, or she assumed; the windows were blacked out and the room was as dark as the refrigerator when the door was shut. Chanting echoed throughout the room and it came from the direction of flickering candles. She was no longer wearing her white cloth, but was back in her jeans and T-shirt.

"Where am I?" Willow asked whispering. Only Hecate was in the room with her.

"1948" she replied.

"Okay that takes care of the when I am but not there were…"

"Louisiana." She stated; Willow hated one word answers.

"Um, maybe a little something more… specific?" Willow requested.

"I believe this is a factory, yes that's it."

"But why am I here?"

"To learn. Alone." With that Hecate vanished from the room. Willow was left stranded. She thought the most logical thing to do would be to progress towards the flickering light. The chanting got louder and louder until Willow could manage to make out some of the words.

"Govinda, father of protection we implore you. Unworthy are we whom speak your name..." They all chanted simultaneously.

_"It's a coven" _Willow thought. They suddenly stopped when they heard Willow's footsteps. There were five of them, each sitting on the five points of a black pentagram and with a candle of Govinda the god of protection in the centre. They all wore dark robes and had their heads bowed. They all raised their heads to look at Willow. They were all female. The woman at the head of the pentagram got to her feet. She had long red hair and as she stood up, revealed a baby in a cradle behind her. Willow looked into the woman's eyes but they were completely black.

"Who are you?" demanded the woman in a demonically deep tone. Her black eyes faded to a shade of blue; she dropped her hood.

"Me? Uh... I'm Aggie, Aggie woods" she lied, "I've come to join your coven."

"Coven? Child this is no coven, we are worshippers of the demon Alvoki. We know a witch of the light when we see one. Leave this place now!" The witch asserted. Willow now knew that this was a powerful evil coven and even though she could have put up a good fight, in the end Willow would not be able to defeat them. She turned to walk away when a petite witch stood and dropped her hood. Her hair was bleach white and shoulder length.

"Wait!" she exclaimed. Willow sensed her magic; she was a prophesier, and a powerful one. "So much about this one is uncertain Jean" she was addressing the leader of the coven, the red haired lady. "She shows true light, but something is buried deep within, even though she fights it the dark magic's inside her will become dominant. With our supervision this one could become our greatest weapon."

"Are you certain Margaret?" Jean asked addressing the white haired woman.

"Quite" replied Margaret. "The magic's around you, hmm, she is not from this time and she has a strong connection to us. Come, sit." Margaret invited. Willow abided. Margaret's prediction about the dark force within Willow worried her terribly, but she would have to cross that bridge when she came to it. She kneeled down beside Margaret. Jean gave the three others a look and they bowed their heads and continued with their chants.

"Tell me, is what Margaret tells me true?" Jean asked. Willow decided lying was pointless.

"Yes, I am not from this time." She replied nervously.

"Why are you here?" Jean asked. Telling a powerful evil coven that she is a new goddess from the future who has been sent back in time against her will by the most famous gods of pagan lore because she has managed to anger them in some way was too risky. Telling them that she was responsible for casting a spell on goods best defence on the sources of evil, the slayers, was too risky to share too.

"I'm here to learn from you women. Margaret was right about me, I am tired of hiding who I really am." Willow lied convincingly, the fact that it was easy to lie about that worried her, and it felt like it was the truth.

"Do all women dress like that in your time?" Jean asked curiously.

"Yes actually they do. Correct me if I am wrong but Alvoki is a powerful demon of chaos and possession, yet you gather around a pentagram channelling good magic while praying to Govinda, a god of light and protection. What gives?" Willow asked. It took them a moment to fully understand her vocabulary. There was a pause in the coven's chants when Willow mentioned that they were channelling good magic, like they were ashamed of doing so.

"About a month ago our coven was a lot bigger. We had worshipped our dark lord for months and the time came for an offering. Alvoki demanded that we turn over the life of one of our sisters. We faithful few respected our lords' demands but the others were sceptical. A battle broke out; they used good magic on us! Eventually few survived the battle but Alvoki was angry. Our sister's use of good magic angered him and he considered us witches of light along with them. He attacked us from the nether realm through a portal that originated near the north wall. We lost two faithful sisters that night, we prayed to the dark god of protection but he too had turned his back on us. Every night our lord attacked we lost another two sisters until we decided we must do what we must to protect ourselves. We have been chanting for hours but have had no sign of Govindas' energy. We fear all is lost." Margaret explained through heavy tears and shivers. Willow thought _"I hope this Alvoki takes these people one by one." "If they try to sacrifice that baby then so help me god I will call on some bad ass earthquake to swallow these bitches whole." _But even though these women were evil, they were not demons. She had to protect them.

"I'm so sorry" Willow lied in a sympathetic tone, "When does Alvoki usually make his move?"

"He was supposed to have arrived the moment we heard your footsteps, but when we saw it was you we thought he had sent you." Jean added.

"Sent me?" Willow asked.

"Every night is different. The first time it was our lord himself. Second it was a nest of vampires, then it was plagues; locusts to be exact. And last night was Genlock demons. It was viscous but it killed two of our sisters before Jean was able to eviscerate the beast." Margaret interjected.

"Maybe the prophesier is wrong Jean! Maybe our prayers of light are working!" exclaimed a dark haired woman sitting opposite Willow.

"**You will hold your tongue Gwen! Never put your faith fully in the powers of light or so help me god I will strike you down were you kneel you insignificant roach!**" Bellowed Jean in the same demonic tone she had used to greet Willow. The candle that lit up the entire hall of the abandoned factory was suddenly blown out leaving the women in complete darkness. Two of the witches screamed in terror.

"_Dark witches that are scared of the dark? Irony really hasn't lost its touch_" Willow thought as she got to her feet. She had feared this part; she could not use any of her spells of light to light the hall back up and using her dark magic's she considered too risky. But it was either the risk, or the lives of five human beings. She muttered something in Samarian, her eyes blackened and four bolts of green energy emitted from the palms of her hands. They shot off to the four corners of the ceiling and illuminated the room to a slight glow. The doors at the end of the hall were flung open and a bald figure stood in the threshold. It snarled ravenously and walked slowly towards them.

"What is that thing?" Margaret asked fearfully. Willow held out her arm in the direction of one of the magical balls and telekinetically moved it down to above the things head. It snarled in confusion. It was bald and a pasty grey colour, it wore leather and had teeth unlike anything the coven had ever seen; but Willow had seen plenty of them... back in Sunnydale.

"Oh my god, it's a Turok-Han." Willow announced trying to hide her fear.

"A what?" Jean asked impatiently.

"It's sort of like an uber-vampire from the Hellmouth." Willow explained. The women seemed to relax at the word, Hellmouth.

"We're nowhere near a Hellmouth, how did it get here?" Gwen asked through tears of fright.

"The dark lord must have summoned it to the Nether realm and transported it here." Margaret predicted. Willow figured the best logical way to deal with the Turok-Han would be if she used the combined magic of the coven to trap the vampire in a mystical barrier. Whilst trapped she would conjure up a swirl of stormy flames and hopefully that would be enough to kill it. Willow came back to reality. The women had already begun defending themselves from the Turok-Han. Jean had levitated herself in the air and was launching entropic energy at the vampire; it had no effect. Margaret turned to earth magic; she drained some of the earth's energy and changed it into telekinetic energy. She thrust her arm outwards sending the Turok-Han flying back at the southern wall were it had entered. It didn't even phase the thing, Margaret had gotten it angry however, and it ran at break neck speed towards her and grasped her by the neck. Margaret screamed out for her sisters to help her but Gwen and the other two had made a break for the door while the Turok-Han was distracted. It plunged its fangs into Margaret's neck and began to drain her dry. Jean, Willow and the baby were the only ones left. Jeans magic began to drain and she dropped to the floor, she crawled to the baby.

"I will not let that thing hurt you my darling Grace." Jean promised. Willow staggered backwards to Jeans' side. The baby was wrapped tightly in a large white cotton blanket. Its bright blue eyes stared up at Willow. She noticed a small stitch in the blanket written in light blue string. "Rosenberg" it read. Willow now made the connection of why Hecate had chosen to bring Willow here. Grace Rosenberg was the name of Willow's mother and her Grandmother, Willow called her Grammy, was called Jean Rosenberg. Jean died when Willow turned eight. The woman that disgusted Willow when she met her now became a woman that Willow cared a great deal for.

_"My Grandmother, a dark witch who practised dark magic's and worshipped the demon Alvoki? This cannot be right."_ Willow thought briefly. Willow remembered her grandmother teaching her how to ride her bike when she was five years old. No wonder when Willow's Mom found out she was practising magic it was so easy for her to burn her at the stake. But this was not the way things were supposed to happen, her grandmother was not destined to die here on this night. "Gram- I mean Jean, take my hand!" Willow exclaimed. Jean grasped Willows hand and they stood facing the Turok-Han. It had just finished draining Margaret and thrust her decapitated head the wall. Willow and Jean stood in the centre of the pentagram. Willow's eyes blackened once again. Jean looked at her.

"What are you planning to do, a teleportation spell is too risky" Jean warned.

"I'm going to construct a barrier using our combined abilities; I should be able to hold the Turok-Hon long enough for you to get away with Mom- I mean your baby." Willow explained.

"Just how do you plan to do that!" Jean exclaimed. Willow turned to her threateningly.

"With good magic." Willow stated. Even though Jean loosened her grasp she never let go. Willow began to chant.

"**Sermonia minerva saypio sayperay saypsay saypio impedimentum!**" Willow exclaimed. Jean felt an upset in her balance but chanted along with Willow; her grasp tightened. A translucent barrier ensnared the Turok-Han. It clawed at the invisible wall, its snarls grew louder and holding the barrier became harder and harder. "Go, now!" Willow advised Jean loudly.

"Thank you for this, I swear my children will know of you" Thanked Jean. Jean let go of Willows hand and the barrier weakened. Jean ran for her baby from the crib and ran as fast as she could towards the doors. Willow couldn't hold it; The Turok-Han broke free. It lunged at Willow and grabbed her by the neck. The vampire snarled at Willow and leaned forward. She tensed up to prepare for the soon to be searing pain but... there was nothing. The grasp around her neck disappeared and the drip from the leaky roof of the factory was nowhere to be heard. She opened her eyes. She was trapped again in the white nothingness with Hecate standing so close to her that their noses were almost touching.

"What say you?" Hecate asked plainly.

[-] Chapter 2

Willow was completely disoriented. Fathoming what she had just experienced proved difficult so she ignored Hecate and walked in the opposite direction. "We're far from finished." Hecate announced as she walked slowly behind her. Willow turned, she was angry.

"That... was something I did not need to know. Honestly no more family tree thing I've learned my lesson, send me home." She pleaded. Hecate's head tilted again to the side. Willow backed away to avoid getting bitch slapped again. "Why did you send me there, what was I supposed to learn?"

"You tell me..." Hecate advised.

"Something about my Mom maybe? Or that I wasn't supposed to save my grandma and the powers that be wanted her dead? Or"-

"You're not seeing the big picture witch. Think deeper." Hecate said interrupting her. Willow racked her brains for an explanation. She new Hecate would not let her leave if she didn't figure out what she was supposed to learn.

"Is it something to do with my magics?" Willow guessed.

"Now we're getting somewhere."

"Ooh! My weakness is kryptonite, that's what's making my powers go all wonky?" Willow guessed with a happy yet unconvincing smile. Hecate didn't look amused. "My magics right, well magic isn't essentially good or evil, it's how you use it that defines you"-

"That's where I'm going to stop you witch. You must know by now that you're not just any other sorceress."

"So you're saying my magical roots are evil because of my Grammy Jean?" Willow asked weakly. Hecate slowly paced towards her. Willow found it so hard to look at Hecate and not feel Tara's' essence. She, without thinking, trusted Hecate because of the way she appeared and it killed Willow that Tara wouldn't just grab her and kiss her passionately. Hecate placed her hand on Willow's' head and a relaxing sensation washed over her. Once again the whiteness of the room got whiter and whiter until Willow shut her eyes again.  
Before she opened them she felt around on her body to see what she was wearing; she'd ditched the dress again and was wearing her jeans. She opened her eyes. The sound of a ringing telephone echoed through the hall of a bright white corridor. Wooden doors were placed in rows along the walls and a distressed couple entered the hallway and began to walk in the direction of Willow and Hecate. "Okay, I'll bite. Where am I now?" she asked. Hecate opened up her mouth slightly to reply but was interrupted by Willow, "No wait, better question; When am I?"

Hecate despised Willow's' constant questions and lack of respect and she wasn't good at hiding it. Willow spotted the look and instead gazed at the tiles beneath her shoes. "Sunnydale memorial hospital. Second floor up, room seventeen. Six years and one month ago." Hecate replied.

"Is there any point in me asking why I'm..."- Willow was cut off mid sentence as the whimpering couple passed right through her. They sneezed simultaneously as they phased out of Willow. "What was that! Last time we did this I was me. Corporeal me anyway... what gives?" asked Willow in shock.

"Correct me if I am wrong but in 1948 you were not born or even in the process of creation. Were as now, in this time you already exist; body and soul. So some adjustments had to be made. A witch at your level and you haven't explored time travel?" She disappeared once again and Willow was left, incorporeal and ghostly in a corridor in Sunnydale, alone. _Great._" She thought. She peered through the nearest window but it was empty except for the bed and machinery. So was the next one and the next one until chanting speech echoed out the door of the final room on the hallway.

_"Are we ready?" _a familiar voice asked.  
_"Stinky herbs are go" _replied Cordelia's voice.  
_"Did I mention I didn't take Latin?" _asked Oz's' voice.  
_"You-you don't have to understand it you just have to say it, I hope_." She knew now that it was her voice that was in the room with Oz and Cordelia. She knew now where she was specifically. This was where she performed her first real spell; the spell to cure Angel. She picked up her pace and walked through the wall to enter the room. She stood in the corner and watched.  
_"Right"_ Oz replied. _"Quad perditum est... invinator."_  
_"Not dead nor not of the living"_ Willow began, _"Spirits of the interregnum I call."_ Future Willow mimed the words to herself in the corner as she watched past Willow perform the spell.  
Past Willow continued, _"Gods bind him, cast his heart from the... evil... realm."_ Future Willow remembered while watching how much she felt like she was going to pass out at this point.  
"_Return... I call on..."_ past Willow began breathing heavily.  
"_Willow?"_Oz asked worried.  
_"Are you okay?" _Cordelia asked. Future Willow smiled; she knew this was the part where she let the magics take over. But... past Willow just continued to breathe heavily into the bed sheets. _"This isn't right, by now I had already began the Latin part. What's wrong? If she doesn't concentrate now then the whole future will be changed."_ Willow knew the rest of the spell and so acted on impulse; she catapulted off the wall and jumped right into herself. She took control of past Willow's body and continued with the spell.  
_**"Te implore duomne nuegnora chesta rugamente..."**_ Willow chanted.  
_"Is this a good thing?"_ Oz asked Cordelia.  
_"Hey, speak English!"_ Cordelia said to Willow. She ignored them, she had to continue.  
_**"Nichimore nichia fiente la orseecha ava transporta sufletool la ien." **_The orb began to glow and Cordelia and Oz looked worried.  
_"A safia, a safia acum, ACUM!"_ Willow felt that familiar sensation and quickly left past Willow's' body. She landed on the floor and shut her eyes on impact. She opened them and found that she was lying on the transparent air that was purgatory. She stood up and looked at Hecate. "Again with the dress?" she asked rhetorically. Hecate paced in a circular motion around her again. "That was way too risky, if I hadn't jumped in then the spell wouldn't have worked. Why was she weaker than I was?"

"She wasn't, you were both at equal stages at that time" said Hecate.

"Then why was I able to complete the spell alone when she wasn't?" Willow then realised how naive she had been. That spell was a powerful one and an inexperienced witch could not have performed it that easily. "Unless the same thing happened then, my future self jumped into me and took control. Well that's a self esteem buster ill tell ya' that." Willow sighed.__Hecate nodded in approval.

Meanwhile back in Ohio...  
Buffy had set her alarm for four fifty-five so that she could greet Willow when she returned. She had been gone all day and was to be expected back around now-ish. She clambered out of bed at the sound of the alarm. She placed Mr. Gordo on the opposite side of the bed and walked to the hallway. It was still dark out so the mansion was only dimly lit. Her shoes were at the side of the entrance door so she slipped them on and cluttered herself down to the main gate. She hated the private road at night, the chirping of the insects was incessantly irritating and what others called a road she called a mud trekked path with tire imprints. She had only had about an hour and a half's sleep as it was her turn for training and patrolling today but she didn't mind. It passed the time when she was... bored. _"Thank god Giles didn't hear me think that. Yeah Buffy that made a lot of sense" _she thought. The bushes and hedges on either side of the private road seemed to take on a life of their own, like they watched her or something. The black barred gates were illuminated by small solar lights and on the opposite side Buffy spotted Kennedy pacing from one side of the path to the other. "Kennedy?" Buffy asked as she crossed the gates. Kennedy bolted at the sound of Buffy's voice and spun round quickly back-punching Buffy Square in the face.

"Buffy I'm so sorry; I thought you were a vamp or something." Kennedy exclaimed.

"Little tip? Vamps and things don't usually acknowledge that they're behind you; or know your name. Well usually. What are you doing out here?" Buffy replied while she straightened up.

"Well I missed my Willow Y'know, and I knew that she'd be back this morning and I couldn't wait. Besides my room is directly above Rona's' and she plays her music loud so people don't hear her crying." For some unknown reason when Kennedy said that Buffy felt guilty.

_"So what if she feels guilty. She should. She got seven innocent girls killed"_ she thought. "What time is it? Shouldn't she be back by now?"

"Yeah actually, its past five am, I'll give her another half hour and then I'll call."

"Actually Kennedy, I've known Willow a lot longer that almost anybody in the house. And I know when she lies and I got a weird vibe from her before she left. I don't think she went to find a new Slayer. I think she went to do something witchy related and if she isn't back yet I'm worried she might have ran into trouble. I know I'm just being worry-gal but could you call her please? Y'know put my mind at ease." Buffy pleaded weakly as she sat on the small stone wall that formed the boundary of the private road. Kennedy fumbled around in her pocket for her cell and took a seat next to Buffy.

"Sure Buffy." Kennedy began to dial and held the cell phone to her ear. '_Your call is being forwarded to an out of range area'. _

"Willow should at least be back in Ohio state lines in her car by now" Buffy said with a nervous tone.

"Maybe she is but she just lost her cell?" Kennedy guessed weakly but she didn't even manage to convince herself. Buffy got up from the wall and ran back to the house to wake Giles, Kennedy followed behind her. They burst through the entrance door and spotted Nicholas at the head of the dining room table. He was obviously waiting for them to come back.

"Ladies, if you would like to take a seat." He announced. Kennedy and Buffy exchanged a look but never the less took a seat.

"Okay Nick what'dya know? Where's Willow?" Buffy started.

"So Tabatha hasn't returned to the manor? Can't say I'm surprised." He replied bluntly. Out of blind anger Kennedy rose from her chair, grabbed Nicholas by the neck and launched him on top of the table. She held him down.

"Lets try this again" Kennedy began, "Where's Willow?" Buffy placed her feet on the table just next to Nicholas's' head.

"Boy, she looks pissed." Buffy said tauntingly.

"Alright alright! Just let me up." He exclaimed brutishly. Kennedy loosened her grip around his neck and eventually pulled back completely. He sat up on the table and began to speak.

"Miss Rosenberg had a little dispute with your friend Alexander a few days ago. Long story short she decided to a acquire herself an Urn of Osiris. She left for the Sunnydale crater yesterday to perform the ritual closer to the body. I myself, knowing where she was, was expecting her an hour ago. But from what your precious sister has told me, Sunnydale outskirts are deserted. Not even demons go there no more, they fear that they will be swallowed into the crater or something." Kennedy strongly grasped him by the collar of the blue shirt he was wearing and dragged him off the table; she almost knocked his sunglasses off, almost. She dragged him to the door.

"Kennedy what are you doing!" Buffy yelled. She had already shut the door behind her. Giles heard the bang and looked over the first floor balcony in his bed robe.

"Buffy what is it?" he hollered. Buffy looked up at him wearing an anxious expression.

"Willow" she replied. Buffy ran at the entrance hall doors and flew out of them. Kennedy was halfway down the private road sidewalk. "Kennedy, where do you think you're going!" She stopped suddenly and turned to meet Buffy's worrying gaze.

"Sunnydale."

Hecate was still pacing around Willow. So far all Willow had learned was that her magics rooted from dark power and that's why it's so hard for her to fight the temptation. "Okay, I learned. Hell I even brought me a number two pencil. Can ya send me back now?" She asked.

"Much more to be seen. To be heard. To be smelled. Touched and felt. Come." Hecate said as she once again grasped Willow by the forehead. So far Hecate had taken her to 1948 where she learned of her magical roots. Then to where she performed her first spell, well partially. After that Hecate took her back two years and six months ago to Sunnydale cemetery to where she resurrected Buffy. And finally she took her to a month and a half ago when Willow performed the spell on the potential Slayers.

"Where are we?" Willow asked for the fifth time. She had had enough of all this time travel.

"This place has gone by many names. In your time I believe you call it, home." Hecate said. Willow looked around, she was standing on the cliff edges of the manor, it was night and there seemed to be a struggle inside.

"My home was swallowed by evil, the manor is just a place where I sleep" Willow said with a hint of despair. Hecate was confused. "Feel free to disappear now." Willow scoffed. And just like every other time Hecate was gone. She was incorporeal so she knew that she wasn't drastically in the future. She was disappointed to discover that even in the future she was stuck at the manor. She hadn't admitted it to anybody but when she performed the Scythes spell she thought to herself, "_Hellmouth? Closed. Kennedy? Alive. I can finally have a normal future"_ But apparently she would be having no such luck. The doors had been blown of the hinges and the bricks on the front side of the manor that were as old as when Cassandra Blaire led her crusade where completely gone. Vampires were raiding the entrance hall and the Slayers were being cornered. By the looks of Amalia she was around sixteen. She's thirteen now so you do the math. Vi had thrown a chair at a vampire that was making a run for it in Willow's' direction but it just went right through her. The sofas had been thrown across the room and had scorch marks all over the leather. Seven of the twenty-four chairs where still by the dining room table; not standing up but still close by. Banging growled from the upstairs floor and the threshold in-between the grand staircases were door less. The kitchen seemed to be on fire too. She looked around; she couldn't make out the face of Kennedy, Dawn, Vi, Rona or Xander. Giles and Robin were battling the fire in the closed door hallway and Buffy seemed to be battling a dark haired woman in dark clothes on the first floor balcony.

"What have you done!" Buffy yelled at the woman as she high kicked her to the face. Willow couldn't hear what the woman was saying.  
_"Is that Faith?"_ Willow thought.  
"How could you lose control like this, **again**?" It sounded like Buffy was crying.  
_"Yep, definitely Faith. Faith must go all 'five by five and Buffy sucks' again."_ Faith rose to her feet and started attacking Buffy. Buffy lunged forward with a flying kick but Faith caught her and grabbed her by her jacket. Faith thrust her over the edge of the balcony and she crashed onto the dining table, it was snapped in half by the impact of Buffy's body. Her neck snapped. _**"NO!" **_Willow exclaimed. She ran to Buffy's side with tears welling up in her eyes. She looked up at Faith. _"This can't be real...this can't be happening..." _it wasn't Faith on the Balcony with Buffy, it was Willow. Her hair was black again. Her eyes were empty, saying they were black felt like an understatement. Willow was cut and bruised but she didn't even seem fazed. Evil Willow looked directly at Willow. She levitated off the balcony and landed right next to her, she crouched down and took her by the hair.

"I thought I could stop it too, prevent it. But the entire time all that blonde bitch did for a decade or so was hold us back. Look at the power you could have here, just give in Willow and save yourself years of battling the wrong people. The only reason I can see you right now is because I'm so juiced but I'm draining fat so lets just cut the chase. If I remember right Hecate comes to get you just before I kill Buffy and Xander, or was it after? I don't know it was years ago. Anyway, one down... I'll be seein ya."  
Evil Willow glamoured out of sight leaving a black electric mist in her place. Willow felt the sudden urge to run to find Xander and protect him but before she could get out of her crouched position the mansion was already changing into that familiar yet growingly irritating white abyss of nothingness. Willow sat on the floor and took her head in her hands.

"You see what is to come." Hecate and Osiris said together. Osiris hadn't joined Willow and Hecate on their quest through time but he had suddenly reappeared.

"So let me take a wild crack at this. You brought me here, to take away my magics because I'm inevitably going to try and destroy the world again?" Willow asked angrily through her tears.

"In the plainest sense... precisely" replied Osiris.

"But I'm not, I mean future me or other future me? Whatever my point is that I won't let that happen, I need my magics to help find the Slayers. Without my magic I'm just another girl in that mansion. Please don't do this" Willow pleaded.

"Three years ago the Willow you just witnessed said the same thing. We cannot risk it" Hecate asserted.

"But I have friends, they help me to keep a level head, without them my head would be all wonky. And I have Kennedy" Willow began to whimper more.

"Your friends? They're just a distraction witch" said Osiris.

"That's complete fooey and you know it" she argued.

"The death of one of your friends is what triggers your dark magic back into motion" Hecate added. "She hasn't learned as much as we hoped, she's a stubborn little witch. She must be shown..."-

-"No! No more showing of anything to anybody, I've had enough! Take me home, now" Willow exclaimed in utter anger interrupting Hecate mid sentence. She raised her arm to hit her again. "Don't you **dare **touch me." Hecate stopped, shocked at Willow's' outburst.

"She shows potential and power brother. More than I may be able to handle." Hecate backed away until she dissolved into the transparent walls of purgatory leaving Willow stranded with Osiris.

"As much as I am tempted to see just how much power you do contain witch, time is of the essence. Your friends will find you soon. We must hurry" he warned.

"Why should I go anywhere with you?" she asked.

"Because destiny appears it so and so it will be."

"Okay did that make any sense that I don't know?" He began to walk towards her, she backed away. He grabbed her by the face firmly but as much as she tried to free herself he was just too strong. He leaned in and kissed her straight on the mouth. She refused to close her eyes but was forced to as the whiteness of purgatory began to become stronger and stronger once again.

[-] Chapter 3

"Where are we?" Willow asked Osiris. It looked like a cliff side but without the sea part. Instead it was just a lake and small kids around Amalia's' age were jumping off of certain rocks. There were wooden cabins on a field near the cliff and a house that was smaller than the manor but larger than Buffy's home back in Sunnydale perched further up a small bridge.

"You must forgive me, my sister is a lot more talented in time travel so your guess is as good as mine."

"But I've never been to this place or even heard of it, what's this got to do with you wanting to strip my magic?"

"You do remember saying that your friends keep you grounded? I'm trying to prove to you that they have their own agendas. They use you Witch."

"Yeah yeah whatever, why haven't you disappeared yet?" she asked disappointed.

"Call me curious."

" _'Great'_ so any idea on why which of my friends I'm here for?" she said, she remembered he had heard her thoughts previously and worried in case he heard her comment.

"No" he replied. She tutted to herself silently and walked off across the field. The cabins were kinda' old and the windows had a yellow tint but the families that inhabited them seemed joyous and happy, all except one that was closest to the top of the Cliff. Willow peered through the window and spotted a dark haired aged woman lying on a wet sofa wearing the same expression she had been seeing on Xander for the past month or so. She was drinking wine straight from the bottle and had a white powder lain out in layers on a small mirror; Willow assumed cocaine. Willow walked around to the opposite side of the house when she spotted a little girl; she must have been around ten years old, standing on the top rock ledge of the cliff. There was a sign next to it that read _'Boston Family Quarry.'_ The girl had long wavy hair down to the core of her back and it covered a worn pink bikini top and bottoms. The drop from where the girl was standing to the lake below was huge and Willow worried for the girl's' safety. But when she ran towards the little brunette girl to warn her of the dangers and the decking chair that she should have tumbled over heavily just passed right through her she remembered that she was incorporeal.

"Don't do it Faith you'll hurt yourself!" cried a little boy floating in the water below. The girl didn't react, she gave him a smug smile and swan dived right off.

_"Faith?"_ thought Willow. Willow turned quickly to look at Osiris but he wasn't there, he must've gotten bored or something. _"Asshole"_ Willow thought. It was only then that she noticed the old cabins had gotten a lot older. Some had even caved in, the grass of the field had turned yellow and every window was smashed. The clear lake had turned a pasty green colour and Faith was once again standing at the top of the Cliffside. She was taller and more clothed; her hair was shorter and darker. Without realising it Willow must've made another jump through time. Faith set off at break-neck speed towards the quarry house. Willow followed behind her. The quarry house's' windows had been smashed and boarded up, the carpets were bloodied and dusty and a gaping hole leading to a dark tunnel lay in the centre of the main room. Faith looked down nervously as the screams of a British woman echoed out of the small chasm. Faith dropped down and followed the tunnel. A shovel covered in wet mud and rats lay next to a rocky wall but Faith picked it up anyway.

"One of the first rules to vampire slayage... find a weapon, anything and everything is a weapon..." Faith mumbled to herself aloud. A cave lit by candles stood dead ahead, the British woman lay pinned to the floor by two vampires. She was bleeding from her wrists and had large bruises all over her; what Willow could see of her anyway. Even though she was under the strength of two vampires she wriggled, twisted a writhed to try to break free. She flicked the hair out of her eyes and met Faith's' gaze.

"Faith! Go it's a trap!" she warned. Faith ignored the woman's comment; she was too busy trembling in place at the vampire that just appeared out of the shadows. He was as old as the idea of space and time and had turned a pinkish colour in skin tone. He was stark naked and his hands and feet were cloven. He began to clap in mockery.

_"That must be Kakistos" _thought Willow.

Kakistos began, "You didn't spare a minute did you my dear. Your watcher did say you would come to save her but I imagined I would have had more time to torture her further, ah well. So this is the Slayer" he reached almost nose touching distance to Faith, "oh, my mistake I meant **a **slayer, I hear that there are two now? Tell me Faith is this just a rumour?" Faith shrugged her shoulders and tightened her grip on the shovel. "Forgive me but I imagined you taller, more intimidating perhaps but I guess you're just another disappointment to my day. I am going to kill you you know. But not before I kill your precious watcher." He paced around her and twirled his claws through her dark hair. "You are simply mouth watering..." He shot a look to his vampire lackeys and they released their grip on Faith's' watcher and lunged for her. Faith reacted too slowly and one vampire knocked the shovel from her hand and the other launched her at the closest wall. Faith rose to her feet, took a stake out of her jacket pocket and began to fight back, hard.  
Kakistos kicked Faiths watcher onto her back. She tried to sit up but he head-butted her and knocked her out. Faith was cornered and the vampires pinned her down. "Hold her! I want her to see this" Kakistos exclaimed through a nasty snarl. Faith was pinned stomach to the floor by one vampire while the other held her head so that she was forced to look in Kakistos's' direction. Kakistos tore her watcher's' skirt down the middle. He raped her. Faith screamed at him, cursing while she writhed under the strength of the vampires. Kakistos took pleasure in Faith's' shouts. He sank his teeth into her watchers neck. Willow couldn't watch, it was horrifying. She turned away. She only turned around at the sound of Faith's' stake collide with the chest of a vamp and him scream into dust. Her anger gave her the upper hand and she took out the two vampires as though they were simply kindergarteners. Kakistos didn't even notice, he was too busy and ignorant to notice. Faith picked up the shovel and plunged it right through Kakistos's' right eye. He screamed in pain and fell off of her watcher into unconsciousness. Faith could see by her watcher's' blank, lifeless and empty expression that her watcher was past help, even magical help. Kakistos began to squirm back into reality. Panic washed over Faith, she threw the shovel at the dirty, rocky ground and ran back though the dark tunnel.

Willow dropped her head in her hands; she was utterly saddened by what she had just witnessed. Every grudge Willow had against Faith dissolved into... pudding and sympathy. She looked up from her eyes expecting to find a corpse and a vampire but instead found Osiris standing in front of a vast white background. "What does that have to do with anything!" Willow yelled in anger and through tears.

"Since that moment Faith has never put her trust into anybody else. Even though she'll well never bring herself to admit it, she felt betrayed by her watcher for abandoning her. When the time comes Faith will not help you, she will not help anybody except herself" Osiris advised.

"I don't believe that" Willow replied. Osiris suddenly disappeared; Willow was startled by his abrupt departure. _"Has he left me here? Alone? Forever?" _she thought. It must have felt like hours to Willow, at one point she even sat down and randomly started blurting out vowel sounds just to check that her ears were still wired right. He abruptly returned in the distance and ran towards her. She got to her feet and brushed strands of hair out of her eyes.

"They're almost there Hecate!" he exclaimed. Tara's silhouette entered purgatory. It grew larger and larger until Willow could make out her dead lover's' features.

"I know I'm afraid we're behind this year dear brother. My powers drain every time we break through the time stream and if we wish to release her back to her time and reality she will just have to be told, not shown" she advised.

"Wait, hold it! Who's almost there?"

Thirty one hours and twenty-eight minutes earlier...  
Kennedy dragged Nicholas into his black Aston Martin that he had parked in Giles's' usual space. Kennedy jumped in the driver's seat and Nicholas was forced to ride shot gun. She put the keys in the ignition and began to pull out onto the roads that lead into town. Buffy hurried down the sidewalk to catch up with them before they pulled out of the gates. She threw herself in front of the car causing Kennedy to jerk into a stop. Buffy got up and hopped round to the driver's seat window. Kennedy rolled the window down. "Buffy what the hell! I could have seriously killed you just now, jeez!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah and if you think that you can drive this early without any sleep in your emotional state you're going to meet the same fate. Listen, I wanna find Willow just as much as you do Kennedy. Scoot over and let me drive" Buffy proposed. Kennedy debated with herself whether to let Buffy come along. "Strength in numbers?" Buffy added with a smile. Kennedy smiled, booted Nicholas into the backseat, moved over and let Buffy in. Kennedy was completely silent during the ride through town, she gazed out the window looking into every car that passed to see if she could catch a glimpse of Willow's' long red hair but she was unsuccessful. Nicholas eventually spread out across the black leather that was the backseat and drifted to sleep. Cleveland was empty, barely a soul on the street. No vamps or demons in sight. Just the open road. Buffy let her eyes wonder, she figured they were the only people on the road so she let her concentration drop. She pondered the sidewalk on her side of the car and her eyes were drawn to a passed out dark haired man lying amongst broken glass. "Xander..." she mumbled under her breath. Kennedy heard her say something but she wasn't quite sure what.

"Huh?"She muttered. Buffy pulled the car into a jerking holt in the middle of the road. Nicholas was flung in the direction of the wind screen but instead met the back of Buffy's and Kennedy's chair.

"What in the world?" he asked groggily. Buffy leapt to Xander's' side while Kennedy trailed behind her.

"Buffy he's just passed out, **again**. We don't have time for this" Kennedy warned.

"Kennedy shut up its Xander!" Buffy exclaimed. She crouched to Xander's side, he was drooling all over the sidewalk and his whiskey bottle had smashed on the ground. Buffy shook him awake. "Xander" she said softly. "Xander it's Buffy."

"Huh?" he muttered. Buffy helped him up. He shook himself out of her grasp. "Get off of me Buff! I'm fine." Buffy froze at Xander's' words. He kicked the smashed bottle off the kerb and into the crease of the road. Buffy unfroze, grabbed him by the arm and punched him in the jaw. He fell sideways to his knees. He looked up at her shocked and noticed the tears in her eyes. "Buffy... I'm so sorry" She seemed to have knocked the drunken Xander out of him. "Wait, what is it?" he could sense there was something else bothering her than just his vile drunken attitude.

"It's Willow. She w-w-went b-back to Sunnydale to try to hel-help you. She went to do another resurrection spell for you!" She hit him again. "We all miss Anya Xander, and you made her feel so guilty, you made her feel like it was her fault. I don't know who you are anymore; she could be lying dead in a ditch somewhere and that's on you." She went to hit him again but Kennedy pulled her away. "Get your drunken ass in that car, if anything happens to her I swear to god I will push you into that crater myself." Xander opened his mouth to reply but he caught a _'don't make it worse for yourself dumbass' _look from Kennedy. Buffy got back into her previous position in the car as did Kennedy. Nicholas had clambered back into sleeping position across the back seat. Xander opened the door.

"Move over British boy." He shoved his legs off the right side of the seat and sat down. _"That was our conversation? I suppose it could have been worse. Why would Willow do this, I never asked her to. Bitch is trying to play hero. Oh my god, that's Willow I'm talking about. Oh man what's going on_ _with me?"_ he thought as he shook his head from side to side as though to try to get his thoughts to fall out his ears. The rest of the car journey was pretty silent save for Nicholas's' soft snoring.  
6:00 am.  
7:00 am.  
8:00 am.  
9:00 am.  
9:14 am. Buffy had let Kennedy take over driving when they reached Cincinnati and she slowly drifted to sleep. The vibration of her cell in her pyjama pocket startled her awake. She slid it up and held it to her ear; she didn't even bother to open her eyes. "Hello?"

_"Buffy?"_ asked Dawn's' voice.

"Hey Dawnie what's up?"

_"Uh I wake up to find Giles frantic in the library and you, Nicholas and Kennedy are missing?"_

"Oh right... that, don't overreact but It's Willow, she's missing."

_"Oh god, how's Kennedy?"_ Buffy looked over at Kennedy who was keeping firm eye contact with the road in front. _'When did the sun rise?'_ Buffy thought.

"She's dealing."

_"Well I'm in full watcher detective mode, what can I do?"_

"Actually the best thing I think you could do is sit tight. I'll call you if there's any news, shouldn't you be in school?"

"Yes because kids all over America go to school on Saturdays" Dawn said sarcastically.

"Ha ha. I'll see you in a little while. I love you." She hung up and tugged the phone back in her pockets. Xander wondered whether to say anything, maybe break the silence and he was curious to what Buffy's' reaction would be.

"Everything okay with the Dawnster?"He asked in an upbeat tone.

"Fine" Buffy said following a sigh. Xander heard her heavy exhale and took the hint.  
9:20 am.  
10:00 am.  
12:00 noon.  
2:00 pm.  
4:00 pm.  
5:30 pm. In the space of time were Buffy had finished her conversation with Dawn to now all the passengers in Nicholas's' car had uttered was "Pull over here, I need to use the bathroom" and "I think we're running low on gas, I think there's a gas station up ahead."

"That is... disappointing. No matter I think I can prolong their arrival" Osiris said smugly to his sister.

"Wait what is that supposed to mean?" Willow asked worried.

Buffy, Kennedy, Nicholas and Xander were driving on a desert road. It was blistering heat and there was no sign of civilization for miles. The heat floated on the road ahead in wave like transparent fire and through that Xander made out the statue of a hooded figure through the fog like sand.

"Is that a hitchhiker?" He asked confused, "We must be in the middle of dead vill, what's somebody doing out here alone?" Kennedy began to step on the breaks to talk to the hitchhiker.

"Whoa! What do you think you're doing?" Buffy asked rhetorically, "That guy could be a murderer or... some other type of homicidal... guy."

"Buffy this guy could have seen Willow. I'm stopping this car" Kennedy said assertively. Kennedy pulled over and waited for the man to catch up. Through Nicholas's' dark tinted windscreen Kennedy could see that the man was wearing a black jogging sweater with the hood up, tracksuit pants and shoes; his face was hidden by the hood. He crouched down by Kennedy's' door window and knocked on it. She gave Buffy a_ 'take it easy'_ look and pulled down the window.

"Hey buddy have you by any chance seen a red headed woman? She's about"- Kennedy was cut off by a pair of scaled green claws grabbing her by her top and dragging her out of the car. Buffy caught a glimpse of him, or rather _its_, face. It had bone coloured horns in the place where its ears should have been and its eyes were glowing a bright purple. His skin was scaled and green like his hands but he was absent a nose. Buffy leapt out of the car to Kennedy's' rescue followed by Xander while Nicholas rolled his window down and enjoyed the brief entertainment. The demon had Kennedy pinned to the ground and was whaling on her. Xander pulled him off her while Buffy scissor kicked it in the chest. Both the demon and Xander were sent hurtling in the opposite direction. The demon got up first and upper-cutted Xander knocking him into the trunk of the car. The trunk was blown open by the impact.

"I just had this car detailed, that's two hundred dollars flushed down the toilet" Nicholas grunted from inside the car. Buffy held a hand out to Kennedy to help her up. They stood facing the demon in an aggressive fighting stance and waited for his first move. He lunged at them with a right hook and caught Kennedy in the side of the head; she stumbled slightly and knocked Buffy to the ground. Kennedy retaliated but her attack was caught by the demon and he gripped her by the neck and held her in the air, he began choking her. Buffy stretched her leg out and twirled by the demons feet tripping him and knocking Kennedy free from his grasp. She dropped to the floor and coughed holding her neck. Buffy lunged for him, left punch, right hook, side kick and high kick but he was remarkably strong and countered her every attack. He flipped her over his shoulder and got her in the same position he had Kennedy moments ago. Kennedy got up to pull him off her but was interrupted by Buffy's' outburst.

"No, a weapon get, me a weapon!" Kennedy began rooting through Nicholas's' trunk for a stake or a sword of some sort.

Nicholas began, "Uh... my dear? Sorry to interrupt but I believe that that is a Spanish Illyard demon. Very strong..."-

"Let's just skip the demon animal kingdom tutorial and get straight into how we kill the thing!" Kennedy interrupted. Buffy kneed the demon to the chest causing it to flip straight over her head onto its back. They both got to their feet and continued the fight. Buffy was sent toppling over the hood of the car and the demon went for Xander, he was trying to creep behind the demon to help Buffy but it had heard him when he stood and crunched up a nearby soda can.

"I believe a hot metal rod through the demons head will do the trick. The heat of the rod grantees the demons brain will... well frazzle for lack of a better term" he advised. Buffy slid back across the hood of the car to help Xander. He released Xander at the sound of Buffy's' shoes hitting the tarmac road and caught a nasty jab to the head from her. Kennedy looked around for something rod like and metal. There was a sign post a couple of feet away warning travellers of wild dogs.

_"I guess the pilgrims will have to take their chances with the savage beasts of the desert"_ she thought as she rammed the root of the sign with her boot. ¾ of the sign snapped off while the other ¼ stayed rooted into the ground. She picked it up and spotted Xander and Buffy getting whaled on by the demon. "How's this?" she asked Nicholas.

"Seems sufficient but it needs to be heated" said Nicholas.

"Kennedy hurry!" Buffy exclaimed. The demon had knocked Xander out and was choking Buffy on the ground.

"What was that spell, umm ah yes, _**Exuro lamia!" **_The metal signpost's' tip turned a burning white colour and Kennedy ran around the car to Buffy's' rescue.

"For Osiris I Live, for Osiris you'll die!" spat the demon in Buffy face. Kennedy heard what the demon said and, full of rage, thrust the pike through the head of the demon. It collapsed onto Buffy and she tossed it aside. Kennedy threw the pike on the ground and ran back to get in the car. Buffy helped Xander to his feet reluctantly, she was still angry with him.

"Uh guys, shouldn't we put Mr. Grinch... I dunno' somewhere that's else?" He asked concerningly.

"We so don't have time for that." Kennedy stated as she clambered back into the driver's seat.

"Diddo" said Buffy in agreement. Xander decided he would have agree to disagree and hurried back into the car. Kennedy stepped on the grass and they bolted forward with a screech; leaving tire marks on the tarmac.

"They defeated him sister, time works differently here, and one minute to us is hours for them. We must do this quickly" uttered Osiris. Hecate nodded.

"Do what quickly!" asked Willow worried.

Hecate began, "When the time comes when you...change, Alexander will not help you..."-

"It was Xander that saved me last time!" she argued.

Hecate continued, "But this time, he will not be there..."-

"You must not reveal too much about the future to the witch dear sister!" interrupted Osiris.

"Mr. Wood only looks to save his precious Slayer Faith. That Andrew fellow will not help you. Your precious Slayer Kennedy gives in to easily and does not help you. Rupert Giles was not surprised by your giving in and so gives up on you, he will not help you. And your precious Buffy Summers, you kill her witch and you kill her sister; the key."

"Her name is Dawn!" Willow spat through angry tears. "So I have no choice in this? You s-send me back to my reality without any power, helpless? That does not seem fair."

"You upsetting the balance of the world with your blasted spell on the potential Slayers made things unfair!" he retorted.

"Even if it upsets your precious balance it was necessary. We won. They lost. End of story." She said as she caught Hecate giving her brother a worrying look.

"I'm afraid the time has come. I am deeply sorry that it came to this" He stretched his arm out towards her as though to grab her by the breast. Hecate tilted her head to the side as though she was struck with a sudden realisation.

"Stop" she uttered. "Perhaps this time we reach... a compromise... of sorts?" Osiris looked intrigued and let his sister continue.

"We will allow you to keep your magic witch, if you give us something in return?" she proposed.

"Well I uh, like what? Ooh you can have my collection of ancient Samarian crystals? They'll fetch a healthy price somewhere... I think?" she persuaded but Hecate just ignored her comment.

"We will allow you to continue mystical, spiritual and magical practice if... you allow us to reset the balance between good and evil?" she offered with a smirk.

"Just how will you do that exactly?" added Willow.

"That's the deal witch, take it or leave it."

_'Oh my god. What does she even mean? Like a zombie apocalypse maybe, because I don't think I can work the whole shotgun look. I'm better with the whole broomstick and pointy hat thing. But if I don't take her offer there will be girls all over the world waking up with this enormous power and nobody will know who they are or where to find them. Plus I won't be able to help Buffy. I'll just be that red haired lesbian on the fourth floor who's dating Kennedy. A few days ago my biggest decision was should I put milk in my coffee or not.' _She thought frantically.__

"Have you reached a decision?" Osiris asked impatiently. Willow shook her head from side to side. She even considered that this whole time had been a dream and that if she pinched herself hard enough she would wake up in Kennedy's' arms.

9:00 pm.  
10:00 pm.  
12:00 midnight.  
2:00 am.  
4:00 am.  
5:00 am. "Home sweet home" Buffy announced as she spotted a sign through the darkness of night. It read, "_**Welcome to Sunnydale. Home of the Razorbacks!" **_They drove for another thirty seconds when Nicholas's' headlights met Giles's' Cherry red car that was parked just next to Willow's' unconscious body. Kennedy swerved to a stop and all four of them rushed to Willow's' side. Kennedy picked Willow's' head up off the damp concrete and placed it in her lap. She nudged her awake. Willow's' eyes twitched along with her fingers and legs. Kennedy kissed Willow on the forehead in relief. Buffy spoke first as it was Buffy who Willow first looked at. She was wearing a confused expression.

"Hey Will" she smiled, "Thank god you're okay, what' happened?"

She groggily lifted her head from Kennedy's' lap and sat up right, "Uh yeah I'm fine. Who're you?"


	4. Episode 4: The Reunion Part 1

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I am just a fan.)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 3  
The Reunion Part 1.

[-] Chapter 1

The silence of the clearing, that was Sunnydale, became almost deafening after Willow spoke. The wind that wisped through Buffy's' flowing golden hair became colder and made the fine hairs on her arms rise. She glanced over at Xander in the hopes that he might have an explanation but when he returned the look it was one of confusion and worry. Kennedy was shaking her head towards the floor in denial whilst Nicholas showed no emotion but simply looked as though he was helping. The dampness of the highway was beginning to properly soak into Buffy's' pyjama knees were she was kneeling. "What?" Buffy asked with a half-hearted smile.

"Do I know you? Do you know me? Me?... Do I know me?" Willow asked dazed. Willow lifted her head from Kennedy's' lap and bulked her knees up to her chest. She turned to Xander in the hopes of finding a familiar face but found none.

"Will, stop 'foolin around. It's us," Xander started. Willow shook her head at him in disbelief. Nicholas stood up and began pacing.

"Willow it's me. Buffy? 'C'mon we've been best friends for eight years," Buffy said to Willow as she fought the sting of coming tears behind her eyes and swallowed a sob that was about to erupt from her throat.

"We have?" Willow asked. Through the whole day's' journey of riding in Nicholas's' stuffy car and the amount of scenario's Buffy had composed in her mind this never made the list. It was so unexpected which made it the worst. Nicholas continued to pace up and down the small concrete cliff over the crater when he abruptly clicked his fingers and re-joined the group. He gestured Buffy, Xander and Kennedy to get to their feet and give him some room. Buffy did so immediately, Xander reluctantly and Kennedy not at all. Xander realised that she hadn't spoken a word or even raised her head after kissing Willow's' forehead. She seemed to be in some sort of a trance-like state.

"Kennedy," Xander uttered whilst outstretching his hand to help her up. She didn't react. Instead she shook her head again in disbelief. Xander hauled her up by her shoulders; her brunette wavy hair now wet with the dampness of the air, and leaned her against the car. She clutched to the door and scraped her back down the side of it until she was on the ground again with her knees up to her breast. "Kennedy is everything okay?" she didn't react but stared blankly across the desert plain of the highway that was lit partly by a rusted street lamp and the half moon above. "Kennedy," Xander said louder. She looked up at him.

"It's my fault, if I would have done something, said something before she left," she mumbled as she took one arm from around her calf's and used it to wipe her hair from her eyes.

"Don't talk like that, it's nobody's'..."- she cut him off before he could finish.

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm kind of a brat, and _you're_ kind of a drunk. When things don't turn out how I like 'em I break down... I lose it. So don't you go spouting off that philosophical crap like everything happens for a reason because I've heard it all before, just face it, life sucks... and then you die." The wind whistled eerily in his ears as he tried to reassure Kennedy but he couldn't help but agree with her. Since Anya died he had only been a burden to his friends and those around him, so all he said in reply was,

"and you think sulking is going to help Willow, she needs you Kennedy, now."

"You're one to talk, where were you when Willow needed help? Off _sulking_ somewhere over An"-

"Don't Kennedy, just... just... d-don't." He swished his fingers through his damp, dirty short black hair and turned his back on her. She was over whelmed with sudden guilt over the harshness of her words to somebody who was only trying to help; she got to her feet and said,

"Xander, I..." but he just slowly walked back to join Buffy, Willow and Nicholas. She dropped her face in the palms of her hands and fought the sting of tears behind her eyes. _'I won't let them see me cry, I won't,' _she thought as she got to her feet and followed after him. Buffy was standing with her arms folded across the chest of her grey tracksuit sweater whilst Nicholas was kneeling next to Willow.

He started, "now Tabatha I'm..."-

"Huh?" she asked puzzled.

"Uh, Willow, What's the last thing you remember?"

"Um, I don't know, I guess uh... I just, don't know," she finished.

"Do you recognise the faces of any people here?" she looked around and pondered the worried faces of her friends and her girlfriend.

"Sorry, no."

How many states are there in America?" he asked inquisitively.

"Fifty."

"And what is the square root of eighty-one?"

"Nine." He stroked his stubbled chin and turned to Buffy.

"Well as far as I can tell your Ms. Rosenberg has a bad case of amnesia. She doesn't know anything about herself or her uh... _friends_. But she has common knowledge of the times and seems as intellectually capable as ever." Willow looked scared, somewhat like a small rabbit that had just heard a twig snap in the distance and suspected a fox.

"What does that mean? We take her to the closest hospital?" Buffy snapped impatiently.

"I'd suggest not. Perhaps Rupert can make out a better analysis than I could."

_"Rupert?"_ Buffy smirked.

"Mr. Giles, whatever your preference." Giles and Nicholas had grown quite close in the recent weeks. Buffy just assumed it was because they were both from England but she thought it was a little creepy.

"But there's one more problem," Xander stated whilst adjusting the strap on his eye patch. They turned to look at him, Willow too. "We got us two cars here, and I'm 'bettin Giles will be pissed if we leave his car back in Sunnydale." Kennedy piped up then,

"I'm _not_ leaving Willow," Buffy nodded in her direction in agreement.

"Sure. Willow, Kennedy and I will take Giles's' car and Xander and Nicholas will take his. Sound good?"

"Sounds like a plan," Xander agreed. Nicholas tried to conceal a weak laugh but Xander picked up on it and shot him a '_what's your problem' _look.

"Just happy that I get to drive is all," Nicholas sneered.

"Wait hold up. Why do you get to drive?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong Alexander but you spent the good part of yesterday with your mouth around a bottle and your face in hard cement. Whereas I'm completely sober. The law is the law and rules are rules," he chuckled menacingly.

"Just get in the car scone head," Xander spat whilst tossing Nicholas the keys. Buffy grabbed the keys for Giles's' cherry red car off of the ground and headed towards the driver's' seat, Nicholas did the same and Xander loaded himself in the passenger side of Nicholas's' car. Kennedy went to help Willow to her feet when she thrust her arms up in the air in protest and shook herself out of Kennedy's' light grasp.

"Stop, just... stop," Everybody paused and turned to look at her. "Nobody has told me a thing you're all just ordering me around and frankly I'm a little scared. I don't remember anything and you guys are just assuming that I am going to accept that fact. You're all strangers to me. I mean put yourselves in my shoes for one minute!" Willow gritted her teeth in frustration.

Buffy began, "Will, I'm sorry but if you'll just get in the car we'll take you somewhere safe..."-

"Is that my name? Will? Willow? Please just tell me something, I need...something." Buffy was stunned; she had never seen her best friend look so confused and alone. Buffy walked back over to Willow and shot Kennedy an _'I got this' _look. Kennedy took that to mean that she should go and start the car; besides it was sunrise in an hour or two. Buffy took her arms from around her chest and placed a hand on Willow's' shoulder.

Buffy began, "your name is Willow Rosenberg and you're twenty-three years old..."-

Xander cut in as he stepped out of Nicholas's' car, "you grew up here, with me Alexander Harris, in a town called Sunnydale in southern California. About a month ago _you_ helped Buffy and me and Kennedy and so many others save Sunnydale from big daddy evil and that crater is what's left of it." Willow glanced at the abyss and then at herself, she didn't quite understand but she hungered for more.

Buffy continued, "You met me, here, in your junior year of Sunnydale High School when I asked you if you would help me catch up because I was new to the town. I'm originally a city girl from L.A. We've been best friends ever since."

"But even before that," he took Willow's' hand in his, "and no matter how many times you get lost; I will always tell you this story. On the first day of Kindergarten you cried all afternoon because you broke the yellow crayon and you were too afraid to tell anyone."

"And in your senior year of High School you went from breaking crayons, to floating pencils, restoring souls, talking to ghosts and eventually bringing me back to life. My name is Buffy Summers and I'm the Slayer, well _**a **_Slayer now, thanks to you," Buffy concluded.

"And my name is Alexander Harris, carpenter and pirate. At your service," he said with a giggle.

"And I'm K-Kennedy," Kennedy said from the trunk of the car with her hand wrapped around her mouth and tears streaming from her usually stern eyes. Their usual oak leaf colour now just a small rim around a wide and black pupil. "And I'm in love with you."  
After that there was an awkward silence as Willow processed the fact that before she lost her memory she had a relationship with another girl. Nicholas broke the silence as he stuck his head out the driver's' window and called,

"Okay, I think Tabatha has heard enough, we really ought to get going."

Willow made her way over to the backseat of Giles's' car while Kennedy drove and Buffy rode shotgun. Xander slapped Nicholas over the head with his hand as he hauled himself into the passenger seat of Nicholas's sleek black car. None of them realised just how wet they were, Xander even had to ring out his shirt before they set off, somehow Nicholas remained dry except for the soles of his feet were the water had soaked through the pores of his pointed black leather shoes. Buffy was worst off and she was freezing; since she was only wearing the thin material of pyjama bottoms and a grey hooded tracksuit sweater. Willow's' white t-shirt was now an ugly yellow colour because of the amount of time she had spent laying on the damp concrete and the butt of her jeans was soaked right through to her underwear and the dye from her jeans ran all over the white leather of Giles's' backseat.  
_'That was a nice story they told me I guess, but it's obvious they left out a few details to get me in the car with them. I can't help but trust them.  
Me, a witch? I say that like I know who __**me **__is.' _Willow thought as they drove through the dusk of morning. As soon as Buffy got in the car she pulled her cell from her pocket and called Giles. She put the phone to her ears but only heard the _beep beep beep beep _that told her that she wasn't able to get signal. She would have to wait until they got off the highway and into the nearest town.

_Hours earlier/ back at the mansion/ after Dawn got off the phone with Buffy,  
_  
Dawn dropped her cell in her lap and it collided with a light _thud _on her dark blue jeans. She was sitting on one of the steps of the main staircases in the entrance hall and had her other hand clutching to the dark pine wood banister. She exhaled heavily and used the banister to pull herself to her feet. Her hair was pulled back in a tight pony tail and she was wearing a loose black T-shirt. The smell of Andrew making the mornings breakfast wafted throughout the house and even though Dawn was hungry, she was too worried to eat. Most of the Slayers where sitting at the dining table talking, some were in the Kitchen helping Andrew and even though the Manor, even for its size, was bursting with people it felt empty without her sister. "Hey kid!" a voice called from the first floor landing. Dawn turned and met the appearance of a beautiful brunette girl. Faith. She looked like she had just hauled herself out of bed when she heard the girls getting up for breakfast. Plus there was the sound of Giles's' cursing in the library as he tried to find a way to help Buffy. Dawn didn't trust Faith, ever. Period. She knew that Faith only thought of her as a brat but after the Sunnydale _'sinkhole' _slash _'bizarre alien activity'_, Dawn had learned a thing or two about being on Faith's' good side and its benefits. "What's with the mid-life crisis 'goin on in the book store?" she was referring to Giles in the library. __

'Does she not know how to talk like a normal person? Or does she do it just to annoy people?' Dawn thought. "It's Willow, she's missing." Faith took a place next to Dawn.

Faith began, "_Daammmnnn,_ red's gone and bailed Slayer central. Can't say it hasn't crossed my mind but I..."-

"Can we just...not...right now...please? I have to talk to Giles," Dawn mumbled. She got out of her position and walked through the closed door's corridor towards the library. Faith was a little confused,

_'Now what did I say?' s_he thought. Dawn placed both hands on the closed old door leading to the kitchen, living room and library and pushed. Its creak echoed throughout the entire manor and the girls at the dining room table paused when they heard it. Dawn peered her head around the kitchen door and heard the loud clutter of pots and pans and something about Ninja Wisdom from Andrew. Chao-ahn, whilst muttering to herself in Chinese, was whisking what looked like pancake mixture. Then she stumbled into the library to find Giles, still wearing his night gown and fuzzy green slippers, surrounded by stacks after stacks of books and several empty tea-stained mugs.

"Any word?" he asked without lifted his head from his book to see who had walked in. "When she left this morning all she said was that it was Willow. I didn't have time to catch up with her."

"I know, I actually uh, just got off the phone with her," she replied casually. He met her gaze and stood up whilst taking off his glasses.

Giles started, "Got off the phone with whom exactly? Buffy or Kennedy or Willo..."-

"Buffy...actually, they uh, aren't quite there yet. They have a lead and she said she would call again when she can. She said the best thing we can do is sit tight." She glanced down at her fingers which she had unknowingly been playing with during hers and Giles's' brief and awkward conversation. All he said was,

"Ah, best just um...put my nose back in this book, so to speak," he placed his glasses back onto his nose and sat down. Dawn occupied the seat next to him and placed an empathetic hand on his shoulder.

"Look Giles, I know you 'wanna help but I'm pretty sure you've probably read this book over twice today and you're not going to find anything new on the pages, except maybe a tea stain," she said and they both laughed. "By the sounds of it, Andrew is making breakfast and I'm pretty hungry. C'mon, if you stick your nose into anymore books you'll probably suffocate." She gestured him to join her for breakfast and he met her gaze with a smile.

"When did you become the adult and I become the worried old English man?" he asked humorously.

"Well you've always been old," she replied with a laugh. He slipped his feet into his slippers, stood up and closed his book.

"Order up!" Andrew announced as he brought out a huge plate of pancakes, waffles the works.

Willow blacked out now and again during the ride through the desert plains of southern California. The continuous dry grey road with two metre yellow road dividers just seemed like she was staring at one picture and the car was standing still. They drove and drove and Kennedy occasionally looked into the backseat to check Willow was still there and Willow would just give her a weak awkward smile and gaze casually out the window. The clouds didn't seem to move across the velvet blue sky either; it was like your standard sixth grader had drawn a huge painting of the sky and stuck it there.  
Xander and Nicholas were leading the way in his car while Buffy, Willow and Kennedy trailed behind in Giles's'. Nicholas's' sleek black car flashed its rear lights and pulled over to the sign of the road. Kennedy shot Buffy a look and they pulled over alongside them. Willow piped up from the backseat just as Buffy began to pull the latch on the door to climb out. It must have been about 8 am. "Huh? Bukky, what's going on?" Buffy rolled her eyes to the high heavens and said,

"It's _Buffy_, and I don't know. Sit tight, I'll be back." Xander rose from the car door and leaned on the hood. He used one hand to shade his eyes from the sunlight. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Buff calm down, it's just that scone heads GPS says that there's a small town up ahead. I'm 'bettin on there being a gas station and a payphone because it doesn't look like we get signal out here," he announced. "And I could murder a Starbucks."

"Alright well good, what time is it?" she asked. Xander looked at his blue Tweety Pie watch that he'd had since High School and said,

"Just after... 8:30. We should make it back on time, we're almost to L.A but we won't get that far without any gas." Buffy ran her hands through her crumply hair and let out a breath that she wasn't aware she was holding. She simply nodded in agreement and climbed back into Giles's' car.

"Xander says that there is a small town up ahead, hopefully one with a gas station and a payphone," she announced addressing Kennedy.

"How far?" Kennedy asked.

"Uh about two miles, maybe two and a half."

"I'm on it." This time Giles's' car led the way down the road and surely enough about a mile in a sign appeared in the distance.  
_**'Welcome to Golden Pines!'**_  
When Xander said a _small _town he certainly wasn't joking. There had to be only around ten rows of houses, each with the shutters and curtains drawn. The church looked as old as the parts of the manor from the times of the boys boarding school and the High School was unnaturally small, but then again it was probably proportional to the amount of students that attended it Nicholas thought.  
'_A Tavern is a bar right?' _Xander thought as they drove passed a small building labelled _**'Milton Pines' Irish Pub & Tavern'**_. The gas station was just up ahead. They pulled over next to it. The town seemed deserted except for an elderly lady walking her dog and quiet music coming from the bar. At the gas station nobody was behind the counter and even though Buffy argued, Nicholas just encouraged them to take the gas and go and that nobody would miss it. While the others went to go and get food from the closest grocery store Buffy and Willow, Willow oddly didn't feel safe without Buffy, went to find a pay phone. The payphone itself was a small, over-heated and transparent glass box. Willow and Buffy had to leave the door open to fit them both in. Being with Willow seemed to be like she was taking care of a child. She seemed so innocent, lonely and frightened but it seemed natural to Willow. And the fact that when the gang told her that she was a witch and she didn't run screaming for the guys in the white suits with the big needles to come and save her was a good sign that somewhere deep down she was still Willow. Buffy fished around for change in her hooded sweater and came up short but Willow had some in her jeans pocket. The phone itself had old dried up gum on the end which Buffy flicked off before she held it to her ear. It rung and rung for about forty-five seconds before a British man answered and said,

"Hello?"

"Giles? It's Buffy," she replied relieved that Giles finally picked up. He exhaled heavily before replying.

"Buffy...thank god. Are you alright? Have you found Willow?"

"Oh we found her alright," Buffy looked Willow up and down, "just not all of her."

"You're saying that she has lost limbs or something?" Giles sounded alarmed.

"No no no," Buffy reassured him. She felt she had to tell Giles everything even with Willow listening to her every word. _'Besides, she doesn't even know who Giles is let alone Anya or Tara or whoever it was that she wanted to bring back'_. Buffy told him about everything that had happened since she left the manor. All about the Osiris worshipping Spanish demon to finding Willow on the edge of the Sunnydale crater.

"Good lord Buffy. And you're saying she has no memory of her life, at all?" he asked.

"None," she replied. "But after she did the spell to bring me back she never mentioned anything about losing her memory, temporarily or not. Which means..."-

Giles finished her sentence for her, "She was interrupted."

"My thoughts exactly." Willow did her best to understand but in the end gave up. Eventually she backed out of the payphone box and sat on the floor outside waiting for Buffy.

"Where are you? I've called many times but you were out of range," he asked.

"Yeah I know, sorry about that, there's no cell service out here, I'm using a payphone. Uh, Nicholas says were a couple miles from L.A."

"And Willow is with you now?" he questioned.

"Yeah, just outside the booth, why?" she replied.

"And there is no physical damage that may have caused her to lose her memory? Possibly a blow to the head?"

"Again I say no Giles. Are you going to play Oprah Winfrey some more or can you give me some kind of explanation?" Buffy asked in an impatient tone.

"There are just so many crucial questioned that need to be answered for me to determine who, or-or w-what could have done this Buffy. Too bad we don't know somebody very close to your location who can access Willow's' mind..."

"Lorne?" she suggested but was positive that it was Lorne whom Giles was referring to.

"Lorne," he agreed.

[-] Chapter 2

"You think he'll help us?" Buffy asked Giles through the phone in the over-heated phone booth. Willow was sitting outside the booth, legs crossed and arms in her lap.

"You don't?" Giles replied. He was sitting in his office after spending most of yesterday with Dawn.

"Well I don't know, I mean the last time we saw Angel was over a month ago and when I tried to call him after we got to the manor I got the machine at the Hyperion and Wolfram and Hart have been rejecting my calls," she said worryingly.

"Buffy…I'm sure Angel has just been busy, just as you have. And Lorne loves Willow, they got along well w-when we w-w-were in Los Angeles and I don't see any reason why he w-wouldn't help us," he said in finality.

"But I…"-

"Trust me Buffy."

She exhaled heavily in defeat and said, "Fine, give my love to Dawn?"

"Of course," he said.

"Thanks Giles, Bye." She hung up the phone and slid the door of the payphone to the side and stepped out. Willow got to her feet and said,

"Did everything go okay with that British man? Do you know how to get my memory back?" She looked at Buffy with stern prying eyes. They were filled with hope and Buffy felt awful for having to crash them.

"No Will, I'm sorry," she stroked her fingers through Willow's' hair, "but I can take you to somebody who might." Side by side they walked down a quiet street, too quiet, until they met Kennedy, Nicholas and Xander sitting on a curb outside a small corner store with a bag of soda cans, potato chips and fruit. Nicholas was enjoying a shining red apple and Xander was licking the cheese flavoring of the edges of his fingers and crumpling a bag of _'Cheesy Chips'_. "Let me guess, nobody behind the counter in the store?" she was addressing them all but it was Xander who answered.

"Nu-uh. Everything is just there for the taking here, does anybody even live here? I mean where is everybody. This place really gives new meaning to the term _Five Finger Discount_. It's like a 'freakin video game."  
They must have been on the road for about thirty-four hours in total in the space of around two days and during that time Buffy had noticed that Xander had sobered up and became…well…Xander. He was cracking jokes and talking and acting like he used to. She thought about the fact that she had to lose one friend to get the other back. "So Buff, what did Giles have to say?"

"He… uh, doesn't think that there's anything _he _can do to help Willow," Willow looked up at the mention of her name.

"So what then? We just wait around for scraps of Willow's' memory to come back? Not a chance in hell there has to be something," Kennedy added in an aggressive tone.

"There is something but you may not like it…" Buffy replied addressing them all. "He thinks we should go and see Angel, see if he can help us." She half expected Xander to start punching walls at the mention of Angels' name but he just looked at the floor. Kennedy seemed to think it was a good idea and it was Nicholas who stood up in protest.

"There will be no such thing!" he exclaimed. Buffy furrowed her brows in reply and put her hands on her hips.

"And just why not?" Buffy asked through gritted teeth.

"Because it is in violation of the contract you signed with me exactly three weeks and two days ago when you accepted the building." He puffed his chest out as to make himself look bigger. He was taller than Buffy anyway but he for some reason thought this would help his case.

"You never said anything about that to me or Faith when we signed that contract with Wolfram & Hart," she retorted.

"And it's my fault you never took the time to read the contract before you signed your name at the bottom, in _blood _I might add." Willow couldn't take the confusion, all the way through the argument she kept asking herself questions like,

_Who the Hell is Angel? Why would we find help at a major Law firm like Wolfram & Hart?_ "Wait!" she exclaimed, "Somebody is going to have to explain all this to me; I mean it's my head that these lawyers at Wolfram & Hart are going to be playing around with."

Kennedy mumbled under her breath, "Lawyers my ass. I wouldn't be surprised if they had Teen Wolf do it, or Godzilla, or Big Foot or…"-

Willow cut her off, "What?" Xander jumped in then, he placed his hand on Willow's' shoulder and she took the hint that she should shut up now and ask questions later.

"Nicholas get your head out your ass, without Willow we have no way of knowing were any new Slayers are, they could be in trouble and they have no idea what's happening to them. We're going, end of story," Buffy argued. Nicholas shook his index finger from side to side in her face and said,

"Ah, ah, ah," he clicked his fingers and a bright spark erupted from them. He held out his hand and they glowed the same colour as the spark. Within seconds the contract Buffy signed three weeks ago smoked into Nicholas's' hands. It looked brand new and he began flipping through the pages.

_'I guess I could just grab it, I could do it before he turned another page, and then I could just tear it up? Contract-Smontract'_ she thought.

"I wouldn't if I were you, I'll just conjure another copy," he mumbled as he flipped aside page nineteen. He must have heard what she was thinking. "Ah, um'hm, this is it. According to the contract:  
_Wolfram & Hart gives Ms. Summers full the rain of __(add building address here)_ _to use as she wishes for as long as she deems it useful. _Blah, blah, blah,_ Ms Summers must house Nicholas Reynolds as the buildings liaison to the Senor Partner's_ blah, blah, blah..."-

"Are you done playing Law and Order? We have somewhere to be," Buffy scoffed interrupting him.

"Here it is: _Ms. Summers must accept the fact that Wolfram & Hart is a multibillion and multi-dimensional company with clients that she would deem to be 'evil'. The Senor Partner's offered her __(add building address here.) __as compromise to acquire the new CEO of the Los Angeles branch of Wolfram & Hart. She is __**strongly**__ advised to refrain from entering all Wolfram & Hart branches unless invited to do so by we The Senor Partners. We cannot be held responsible for our client's, at any branch in any dimension, attempts to kill, torture, hurt and or annoy any resident of __(add building address here.)__ if you were to enter Wolfram & Hart._

_Buffy Anne Summers._

"Y'know Nick, I'm 'gettin the impression you need to add that building address," Xander said.

"Ha ha," Nicholas replied sarcastically, "I've been somewhat pre-occupied helping Tabatha and Rupert that I haven't had the time."

"Well the contract said 'she is strongly advised' not to go in. It doesn't say anything about keeping the hell away right?" Kennedy added.

"She's right, and besides... I mean, it's Willow you guys. We have to go," Buffy said. Nicholas let the contract disappear leaving just a small puff of smoke hovering above their heads. He admitted defeat but he had one more problem to bring to everybody's attention. But before he could bring it up everybody was walking back to the car.

"Wait!" he exclaimed. They turned around to find Nicholas with his hands on his hips and tapping his foot.

"Now what?" Buffy asked in annoyance. Nicholas gestured his hands out towards everybody and said,

"Well I'm not going to let you go dressed like that, the Senor Partners will have my head." The gang looked down at themselves and they had to admit, they did all look like they had just broken out of Shaw-shank prison. Xander looked down at his shirt and combat pants and they were damp and smelling. Kennedy had a small bleeding wound on her upper arm from her fight with the demon while they were on their way to Sunnydale and Willow's' jeans' legs were a darker shade of blue to the colour on her butt because the dye had ran from the water. And Buffy's grey tracksuit hooded sweater was torn and dirty and her sushi pyjama bottoms were soaked right through.

"What do you expect us to do?" Kennedy asked.

"I bet there's a store around here somewhere," replied Xander. Sure enough Xander was right but calling it a store would be like calling a rat Godzilla. Nicholas and Xander found themselves a men's store on the corner near the bar and Buffy, Kennedy and Willow found a small boutique next to the church. Buffy managed to find herself a pair of black pants and boots, an _'I Heart NY' _t-shirt and a dark coffee coloured leather jacket. Kennedy went with the more casual look, sneakers, army pants and a black vest top. Poor Willow just picked exactly what she was already wearing. White t-shirt and light blue jeans with black boots, except she got a new hair bobble to make her hair into a pony tail.  
Xander picked himself out a black t-shirt and a plain white shirt to put over it while Nicholas picked out a whole new black Armani suit with a pale pink tie. He spotted a sunglasses rack and couldn't resist so he grabbed his favourite pair of Ray-Bans and headed for the counter. But in both store there again was nobody behind the counter. The town was badly deserted; the only other person they had seen was the old woman with the dog. They had agreed to meet up back at the food store. Buffy had combed her hair so it was down and wavy on her brown leather jacket. Willow and Kennedy had they hair up in a pony tail. Buffy guessed by Nicholas's' attire that there was nobody behind the counter in their store either. "Buff, lookin' good," Xander greeted.

"Thanks Xand, you too," she replied. "And Nick you look... uh..."-

"Smashing? Ravishing?" he said with a devilish grin as he played with his sleeves.

-"I was going to go with slightly over-dressed," she concluded. He shot her a look and she turned to Xander. "I guess we should get going then huh?"

"Works for me, where did we leave the cars?"

"By the gas station I think," Kennedy added. Buffy and Xander walked linked by their arms to the gas station while Kennedy, Willow and Nicholas trailed behind in polite conversation. Xander looked at Buffy.

"So Buff, what's the plan? I mean Nicholas said that going into Wolfram and Hart is dangerous, do we saddle up?" he asked concerned.

"Uh, I don't know. I mean if Angels running it then I don't think he'll let anything get too out of hand." '_That's assuming he lets us through the door.' _Buffy thought. Surely enough the group found the cherry red car standing still right next to the sleek black car. Nicholas glanced down at his new watch; it read 8:58 am.

Nicholas began, "we should reach Los Angles at about 11:30 am and then Wolfram & Hart at lunch if we hurry. Did I mention I'm not on board with this plan, the consequences could be bruta..."-

"Nick, we overruled you already buddy, just accept defeat man," Xander said mockingly. They were about to climb into the car when in the distance the sounds of an enormous bell ringing echoed through the entre small town. Kennedy turned around to find out the origin of the noise and noticed a huge bronze bell perched on top of an old run down church with a bad white paint job.

"Hmm, must be a wedding?" Buffy guessed, "That would explain why there's nobody around."

"No I don't think so, my guess would be the 9:00 am service," Nicholas said as he stroked his chin, "but why would the shop keepers not lock the doors of the shops?"

"Well we are in the middle of nowhere," Kennedy said, "I mean how many robbers can a town this small get?" They all looked at her and shot her a look that meant _'Duh!'_ "Well...except for us... I mean." They were all about to let it go and get in the car when Willow suddenly spoke up,

"Wait!" she announced.

"Will, what is it, what's wrong?" Buffy asked getting back out the passenger's seat of Giles's' car.

"Something's wrong... this town and the people... they're um..." Willow was frantic, she was shaking her head from side to side so her pony tail swished about until in the end she grabbed her head and forced it to look at Buffy. "It's the church, something's going on in the church!"

"Are you sure?" Buffy asked. Buffy considered, if only for a second, that Willow was delusional. '_Her memory has gone AWAL; maybe her magic is the same? No, if Willow says that there's something wrong then I believe her. Even if she's close to being in the loony bin if this whole Angel thing doesn't work out'. _Willow nodded her head. They all exchanged a worried look and waited for Buffy to give the usual orders. "Nicholas, you stay with Willow," she turned to Willow, "you'll be safe with him," she said convincingly. She turned back to Nicholas, "Look after her, I mean it." She turned to Xander and Kennedy, "you guys are with me. Go!" Buffy and Kennedy shot off at breakneck speed towards the sound of the ongoing gong of the church bell while Xander trailed behind and Willow stood awkwardly next to _'The suit guy' _as she now called, him outside the gas station.  
They arrived at the church gate; it was similar to the one at the manor except the churches' was a smidge smaller. The walkway up to the main double doors was littered with blood and several garments of clothing. The double doors were large in size and sort of a wooden/metal material. Buffy tried cautiously to open the gates without them creaking. When inside, Kennedy stalked up to the main double doors and found the left one was open just a crack. She could make out several nicely dressed church goers on one side but she couldn't see the other side without moving the door further open. The Alter and priest or pastor or whatever, wasn't in view either. Kennedy signalled Buffy and Xander to make their way passed the gate and up to her. "Okay so what's the sitch?" Buffy asked.

"I don't know, seems pretty normal to me except for... y'know...the blood spatter on the front lawn," Kennedy stammered.

"Well what's 'goin on inside?" Xander asked.

"Nothing out of the usual I don't think, but my guess isn't a good one. I've never been to church," Kennedy announced allowing Buffy to look through the crack between the doors.

Buffy began, "Looks like the whole town is in there..."-

"Shushhhhhhh!" Xander said interrupting her. Buffy and Kennedy looked at him and he pointed to the church. The girls heard it then too. The priest had started speaking.

The preacher guy started, "Well I think I've out done myself. Hahahahaha! Don't you? I've never taken so much Holy Blood and I couldn't feel...hungrier!"-

"Holy Blood? Vampire?" Kennedy suggested.

"Maybe, but that could be the wine too," Buffy added. They continued to listen.

"This is truly a special day, for all of the people in this room. A new chapter in the bible, _**magnificent **_isn't it? Shall I tell you my story of how our lord accepted me alone into his light? Of course you can't control yourselves can you? You're _**dying**_ to hear it. I awoke this morn in my crypt in the graveyard out back with such hunger it was unbearable..."-

"Vampire," Buffy affirmed. "We have to get in there, but we have to be sure." She put both hands on the left door and tried to open it further but it was no use, it wouldn't budge even with hers and Kennedy's' combined Slayer strength. Then they thought to try the right door and it glided open without making the slightest of sounds, they could see everything now. But they slightly wished that they couldn't. Behind the left there was a litter of bodies of every age group...even children. Each body, from what they could see, had to puncture wounds in their necks and the blood from the bodies ran out from under the door and onto the walkway.

_'How did we miss that? I think I'm 'gunna be sick'_. Xander thought. Wooden benches stood in line stretching up to the Alter from the back door where Buffy was kneeling. It looked like an army ceremony with everybody in the room so still. The two rows of dark wooden benches had red blood stains on them in certain places. The church goers where shaking and holding their loved ones to their chest at a foolish attempt to protect them. Then Buffy spotted him, he was sitting on the Alter wearing black jeans and shoes and a tight black wife-beater vest top. His mouth was smeared with blood but he wasn't wearing his vamp face. He had a poor African American teenage girl by the throat and was forcing her to kneel beside him. The church had a huge stained glass window that portrayed what Xander thought was Jesus at the last supper. The sunlight shone through the window onto the centre isle in a sort of triangular shape. The vampire continued his speech.

-"I mean y'know I had to do something right? I hadn't fed for a night or two and it was either feed then or become a lunatic. A thought crossed my mind, I can make a break for the church and get good old father Thomas as he gets ready for this morning's service..."-

"Buff we can't wait any longer, that vamp could snap that poor girls neck while we just kneel here," he informed.

"I know, but don't you think this whole situation in bizarre? I mean its daylight," she exhaled and turned to Kennedy. "Okay um, Kennedy and I will take out the vampire, hopefully before he can kill that poor girl, and Xander you do your best to get the people out of there." Kennedy nodded in agreement.

_'I've been cooked up in a car for about two days with ail breath here, I could use a tussle'_. Kennedy thought.

"I concur," Xander said in response to Buffy's' orders.

"I'll go in first and get the vamp talking, and then when the fight breaks out Kennedy you come running and Xander you heard the townspeople 'outa there." Buffy got to her feet and pushed the door wide open so it banged against the nearest wall and would get the vamp's' attention. She glided up the isle with such grace, beauty and elegance...she had earned to be cocky too in her eight years of doing this. The church people turned around. The women's' make up had ran down their faces from possibly sweat or tears and the men just stared at Buffy in hope. The children didn't lift their heads from their mothers' chest. The vampire looked up and smiled at her devilishly. She stopped dead before she passed the first row of benches and put her hands on her hips. "Oh damn, am I late?" she asked childishly. The vampire released the girl from his grip and she scampered back to her grandparents. Kennedy and Xander watched from behind the half open right double door.

"Not by much, you can still join the party," the vampire smiled.

"Oh goody, I hate when I'm left out of things," she said in retaliation. The vampire gestured her to come closer but she just furrowed her brows and flicked her hair out of her eyes with a quick swish of the head.

"Who are you?" he asked, he knew that she weren't just another girl from Milton Pines.

"I love it when they don't know me, just adds something to the situation don't'cha think," she grinned childishly.

"Slayer..." he hissed. He shot off of the Alter and stood at the side of the first bench.

"Aren't you going to shout bingo?" she suggested tauntingly. The vampire growled and flinched. He turned his back to her; he was wearing his vamp face when he turned back around.

"So which one might you be? Faith? Buffy? Or one of the others? Since you bitches did your spell it's hard to keep up," he smirked. Buffy was stunned that he knew about the potential slayer spell after only about a month or so. She was stuck for words.

"What? You got nothing else? Word travels fast y'know. Most vamps are talking about what happened in Sunnyville..."-

"Sunnydale," Buffy corrected.

"Same difference. For a while I was scared that I might run into one of your slayers as I go about my business...but then the lord accepted me into the light." Buffy grabbed her stake from her jacket pocket and assumed her fighting stance.

"Let's see what we can do about that," she said as she ran at him. She ran through the sunlight patch on the centre aisle and was almost blinded it was so bright.

"Ah just like chess, the pawns always go first," he mumbled as her got himself ready for battle. Xander and Kennedy rushed in then, Kennedy shot up the centre aisle to Buffy's' aid and Xander began clearing the people off of each row in turn and leading them out of the church. When Kennedy arrived Buffy had scissor kicked the vampire across the room so he was sent tumbling over a bread and wine tray near the Alter. He got to his feet and lunged for Buffy. He managed to get her to the ground and started throwing continues fists at her face. She endured them all until she got the chance to lift her leg from under his body and catapult him into the confession box. Before Buffy could get up Kennedy was already going at the vampire like a cat to a mouse. "Two slayers," the vampire said as he dodged Kennedy's side-kick and elbowed her in the face, "the lord has truly blessed me today!" he exclaimed. Buffy flipped up from the floor and ran at him. She ducked under his attack but he was quick and he swirled around and bolted Buffy in the stomach leaving her winded on all-fours. Kennedy tapped him on the shoulder and when he turned around he was met by her first and he was sent sprawling onto the Alter. He stumbled to his feet. Kennedy knew that he was going to lunge at her from on top of the table and she didn't even have a stake. She spotted the triangular sunlight patch on the floor and she knew she was ready for him.  
He plummeted onto Kennedy but she gripped him by the fibres of his vest top and launched his down the aisle, he skidded up the carpeted red street until his body was fully amerced in sunlight. She helped Buffy up and the two stood waiting for him to burst into flames. Instead the vampire just lay there laughing infamously.

"Buffy, what's going on? I thought vampire plus sunlight equals dust?" Kennedy said with a hint of worry. Xander had just finished clearing out all the townspeople at that moment and was standing at the door just as stunned as they were.

"Stupid, dirty whores! I told you, I have transcended to a higher being. Our father has accepted me into his light and his will be done!" He exclaimed.

"Buffy, what's going on!" Kennedy said loudly

[-] Chapter 3

Buffy was crumbling inside as Kennedy exclaimed at her for advice. All she had known for eight years seemed to be a lie, the rule was that vampires go boom in sunlight and she wondered _what changed? When did it change?_ The vampire was still laughing standing in direct sunlight and everything seemed to be moving in slow motion to her. It sped up eventually though as she spotted Xander at the back of the church rummaging through broken benches to try to find a pointed shard of the wood. He got his hands on a large thin rod of wood and whacked it against the church walls so it shattered into two different individual pieces. The vampire heard the _whack _and spun around to find the source of it. He spotted Xander. "Well, well, well... look what the Slayer brought. And it took away all the sinners. Such actions should be punished..."-

"Can it padre!" Xander ordered aggressively, "Buffy, heads up!" He tossed the two stakes towards Buffy and Kennedy. She watched as it rolled up to her and thudded against the toes of her boots. _What if stakes don't even work?_ She thought. Xander watched as Kennedy picked hers up and grasped it in her right hand but Buffy just remained hunched over holding her stomach from the blow she received moments ago. She stared at the stake. The vampire began to glide towards Xander. "Buffy! Are you serious! You've faced Giant snakes, Gods, uber-vamps and more and your still standing," he backed up towards the wall in an attempt to add more distance between himself and the vamp, "and you've gone all frozen 'cozza this guy. Buffy, he's just another vampire, and your..."- the vampire gripped Xander by the throat and lifted him off of his feet so that just the toes of his shoes lightly caressed the bloody floor, "your _**Buffy Summers**_!" he managed to get out.

"Hey!" Buffy shouted. The vampire smiled to Xander and turned around. Buffy was standing up-right and looking mighty fine. She had picked up the stake and was gripping it loosely in her right hand which she let casually dangle beside her torso. "Didn't you hear him fangy?" Kennedy went to charge but Buffy pulled her back and she took the hint. She backed away but not too far in case Buffy had bitten of more than she could chew. No pun intended. Buffy continued, "You had me scared there for a moment. So what are you? Some warlock vampire who thinks God has blessed you personally? Cute." The vampire growled and released Xander. Xander dropped to the floor and took refuge next to Kennedy.

"You need to learn some manners little girl!" the vampire scolded. Buffy chuckled tauntingly.

"And you," she stepped into the patch of sunlight, "need to learn a few life lessons too, guess it's kinda' late now huh?" Buffy charged at the vampire and began with a scissor kick that he dodged and ducked under. He swerved under her back hand attack but he didn't account for the back kick to his chest that sent him hurtling into the benches.

_I almost feel sorry for the bastard _Xander thought. They fought until they were both directly under the sunlight patch. The vampire catapulted himself off of one side of the bench and caught Buffy square in the jaw with the heel of his boot. She twirled around with the force of his kick and gripped her jaw. She jumped into the air and caught the vamp in the nose with a back hand. She back flipped over his entire body until they were back to back. She inhaled deeply to rely on her senses to find the vampires heart. She thrust the stake behind her and she felt it enter the vampires' body. She released her hold on the stake and turned around. It had gone right through the vampires' heart.

"Dust, you're just like the rest of 'em," Buffy spat. The vampire fell forward and that familiar sight of him exploding into dark bread crumbs soothed Buffy. Kennedy and Xander rushed to her aid and they eventually left the church and headed back to the gas station.

"So Buff what d'we tell the town about yeno...the vampire who walks around in sunlight?" Xander asked puzzled.

"Uh, drugs?" she suggested with a mumbled chuckle.

"Ah good o'l drugs," Xander replied. They returned to the gas station to find Willow fumbling with her fingers sitting next to a gas pump and Nicholas playing with the car wash hose.

"Ah you're back and rather...battered," Nicholas greeted.

"Nice to see you too," Buffy retorted.

"You know what I mean, what happened in there?"

"I guess you could say there was a very pale drug addict wearing mounds and mounds of sun screen," Buffy said. Kennedy and Xander laughed. It's good that they learned to laugh about it. Willow and Nicholas were baffled. Buffy told Willow the story while they were on their way to L.A. She guessed Xander had too. Although Kennedy made it sound a lot more dramatic than it actually was.

_So Vampires' are real then...great, _Willow thought sarcastically. _They failed to mention that one._ "Well why didn't you call the British man? I mean if _vampires _are supposed to y'know," she made and exploding gesture in her hands, "and t-this one didn't..."-

Buffy cut her off, "his name is Giles, Will and because that's going to have to be another days' problem. Right now you're priority one okay?" Willow smiled weakly and nodded her head. __

Giles is going to kill me when he finds out that I didn't call him right away Buffy thought. It must have been around 10:00 am and Buffy had had barely more than an hour's sleep for two days. She rested her head on the car window and took one last look at the desert image in front of her through the wind screen before closing her eyes and hopefully drifting to sleep. She was overwhelmed with thoughts of Angel.

_Over a month ago at the Hyperion Hotel...  
_Angel had been known for his brooding; it defined him amongst other things. He'd just got back from Sunnydale a couple of hours ago and was sitting alone in his room wearing black pants, boots and a black long sleeved t-shirt. He was sitting in a red arm chair with his nose in _Wuthering Heights _by _Emily Bronte_ for the hundredth time. Fred, Gun, Wesley and Lorne had already caught the limo that was waiting for them outside to take them to Wolfram & Hart. Angel laughed at how they tried but failed to be quiet. He had been watching CNN on his out-of-date T.V for hours now just waiting for news about _Aliens coming from the earth in the quiet suburban town of Sunnydale, California_ or _Mass bodies of dead girls found in Sunnydale High. _But instead he watched reporters report on whales being harpooned and government scandals. He finished the book and tossed it onto his bed. He knew his colleagues were going to fall in love with Wolfram & Hart and that they would argue with him that they should take Lilahs' offer so about an hour ago he had began sorting through his old novels and memento's and packing them into cardboard boxes. He got out of his chair to put _Wuthering Heights _in the 'keep' pile.  
He heard a muffled voice on the T.V, _probably some reporter doing a story on Niagara Falls_, he thought. It was when he heard the voice of an African American woman that the vampire with a soul stopped dead and revolved to face the T.V. He sat himself back in his chair and listened contently to the woman speak.

"**Breaking News!"** read the headline. The woman was wearing a red suit and was sitting behind a white desk. She began:  
"Well this just in that the suburban town of Sunnydale in southern California has been wiped off the map. Our reporters where sent there initially to surprise a lucky prize winning campaigner when they came across this astonishing find." CNN showed a picture of the Sunnydale crater and Angels' insides felt like they had just been frozen with liquid nitrogen and shattered. He was shaking his head from side to side and fought back the sting of tears. "Archaeologists' are calling it the strangest phenomenon since Stonehenge. The entire town has been swallowed by a huge sinkhole that goes on for miles. Others are calling it Alien activity and the government have not yet made a statement. What is most bizarre I think is the fact that according to airline, bus station and train records almost every single resident of Sunnydale had fled the town days and even weeks before. They small highway leading into Sunnydale that was not in fact 'swallowed up' however has been marked with large tire marks matching that of a bus or coach..."  
Angel stood up and pinched the root of his nose in-between his eyes with his index-finger and thumb. His beloved Buffy, his little blonde world, his reason for existence had been stolen from him for third time and this time there was no Xander to revive her and no Willow to do another ritual. She was gone. He was alone. Alone. For eternity.  
He sat back down on his bed and fumbled with the remote to switch off the T.V. The room was encased with darkness but Angel could see perfectly fine. His vampire hearing picked up the sound of a long car, maybe a van, pulling up outside the hotel. He suspected that Fred, Wesley, Gun and Lorne had just got back from Wolfram & Hart. He heard the front doors swing open and to him it sounded like a bit of a struggle. But he couldn't care. Buffy was dead. Then he smelt it, minutes later he smelt it. The fresh smell, like ocean air sweep into him. _It has to be my imagination_ he thought. He flew off of the bed and swung open the door to his suite. The hallway light shone in the room and things in it became clearer.  
She was the last person he expected to see, even though he knew her scent like his own but he could scarcely believe it. She was standing there just looking at him with those beautiful wide rainforest green eyes. Her blue jeans where torn around the knees and her white blouse and beige jacket were all ruffled and dirty. She had her tiny fist raised to about his chest like she was about to knock but he opened the door before she got the chance.

"Hey," she said as she exhaled. She was relieved that Angel was home. Angel threw himself around her and buried his head in her hair. He pulled her inside his room and knocked the light on. She spotted the boxes on his bed out of the corner of her eye just before she buried her head in his chest and returned his embrace. He almost crushed her but he feared that if he let her go she would dissolve or something.

"Buffy...thank god. I thought I'd lost you again," he said. She hugged him for a moment longer.

"Angel...oxygen, becoming an issue," she said to his chest.

"Oh, right," he released his hold on her and he led her to the bed were she sat down amongst the boxes and he sat in his armchair. They sat in silence for a while just staring at each other. She eventually smiled and dropped her gaze to her thighs which draped over Angels' bed.

"I can't imagine what you're thinking right now," she said.

"I'm thinking I'm happy to see you and think god you're alive," he replied.

"That's good, I guess. And of course you too. You're in need of a serious explanation huh?"

"It can wait." She stood up and paced up and down the room. He spotted the bleeding wound in her white blouse. He got up to and took a look at it.

"You can explain this though, what happened?" he asked. She looked down to where his familiar fingers were tracing her stab wound. She barely felt the pain from it anymore, it was numb.

"Oh trust me this is like a paper cut compared to some of the others." He stood up and held her by the hips.

"Others? Xander and Willow and the potentials? They're all here?" He asked.

"Those that made it through the fight, yeah. Angel there's something you should know about the potentials." Buffy took him by the hand and led him out of the room. She led him to the first floor balcony where there was around twenty or thirty slayers, some more injured than others and some without barely a scratch. Willow was tearing up bandages for an Asian girl who lay down on one of the lobby couches unconscious. She smiled up to them as she spotted them on the landing. Xander was huddled in a corner alone and Faith was working with Kennedy on Mr. Wood. She spotted Buffy and Angel on top of the stairs and walked over to stand at the bottom.

"Well look at'chu big cheese, all no broody now B's here. Got room for a few hormonal teenagers?" she winked. Angel smiled and hid his face as it went a tiny shade of red. Faith went back to Kennedy.

"And Willows' spell worked then," he said.

"Looks that way," Buffy replied. Angel ushered her back to his room so they could talk some more and she could get a cleaned up. He took a few bandages from the first aid kit from his floor and after Buffy got out the shower he tried to stop the bleeding from his wound. Buffy had no clothes so she just through on one of Angels' t-shirts which was way too big and a pair of his boxers. They sat back down on the bed together. "Well these are oddly comfortable," she smiled, her hair dripping on his duvet cover. He didn't care, he was with his Buffy. He looked at her sternly and she recognised the look. "What is it?" she asked stroking his cheek.

"It's nothing," he replied.

"No you have something face," she argued. He looked into her eyes and then down into his lap. They both sat up and pushed a few boxes on the floor to give themselves more room. They sat facing each other cross-legged. Angel began,

"I, uh...noticed that...um, that spike wasn't among the fray downstairs," He felt miles better for getting that off his chest but the look in Buffys' eyes made him want to stake himself right there and then.

"Spike...uh," she stuttered a bit and Angel suddenly wished he could rewind time, "he's not in the picture anymore. He...um... wore your necklace thing and he sacrificed himself to save us, to save the world." The commotion downstairs had died down by now and a lot of the Slayers had chosen a room and gone up to bed. It was probably likely that Angel and Buffy were the only two awake.

"Did you love him?" Angel asked. _Oh god, I didn't mean to say that out loud, it just burst outa me. _She looked up at him, she had a hint of shock and anger in her eyes but he couldn't look at her without feeling insane guilt for asking that question.

"How can you ask me that now?" she spat.

Angel began to try to defend himself, "I know, I'm sorry. I d-didn't mean..."-

"No I think you did mean it. Angel we haven't been together for a _very _long time. What gives you the right to ask me things like that and expect an answer?" she got off the bed and paced up and down the border of the bed.

"I'm not _expecting _an answer from you Buffy..."-she stopped abruptly and looked at him and cut him off from finishing his sentence.

"So what? You were just going to ask me that and let it float around in the atmosphere until I felt it was a good time to answer you?" Buffy was angry now, she didn't want to be but she couldn't control herself.

"So you _do_ have an answer but you don't feel like sharing?" Angel was getting upset now and he threw back at her whatever she threw at him.

"Who do you think you are Angel?"

"I just wanna know where we stand here Buffy because I'm walking on egg shells right now."

"No Angel you've pretty much crushed them into little tiny pieces by now."

"Buffy it's a simple question, yes or no..."-

"**Do you love Cordelia!"** Angel was stopped in his tracks. He just looked at her. "Yeah Angel, I've heard the rumours."

"You mean did. Past tense," the mention of Cordelia put knots in Angels' stomach. He felt like he failed her, failed to protect her but he'd never say it, to anyone. Ever.

"Huh?" Buffy was confused.

"Cordelia's in a coma." Angel hid his face and put his back to her on the bed.

"W-what happened? Was s-she s-sick or..."- Buffy stuttered.

"Demon got her. Not long ago." Angel understood now why Buffy reacted to his question like she did. She must've felt the same for Spike as he did for Cordie. He turned back to Buffy who was sitting upright in the armchair with her head in her hands. "Buffy I'm sorry, I d-didn't mean..."- she lifted her head from her hands.

"Yeah, I uh didn't mean... either. I'm sorry too."

Angel scratched the back of his neck while trying to figure out how to tell her about Wolfram and Hart. "Yeah, I guess we, uh, have some catching up to do," he said finally.

"We really do," she replied. None of them said anything after that, they just looked at the floor and basked in the silence. Buffy finally said, "I think one of us should say something before Willow starts wondering where I am in the morning." Angel laughed.

"Who goes first?" he asked. It turned out that Angel went first. He began talking about when Buffy left about four years ago after Faith came to town. He lingered the longest on the whole Darla incident and dreaded when he would have to tell her about Connor. He told her how Wesley had gotten his throat cut open by the Slayer who was called after Buffy died last, Justine, after Wesley stole Connor. Then how Connor was taken to a hell dimension and returned six months later as a teenager. Then there came the incident with Cordelia and Jasmine and how Cordelia became a higher being. He left out a few hazy need-to-know details and then that was it. He left out the part were Connor left him at the bottom of the ocean for a whole summer just so she wouldn't freak out if she ever met him. Then there was Lilahs' offer about Wolfram & Hart. He told her about the deal he was going to make with the firm to give Connor a normal life. She protested at first but he convinced her that he was doing the right thing.  
And then it was her turn.  
She began after he left after graduation. She explained the situation with Riley and the Initiative and how they met Adam. Then she explained that that's how Spike got his chip so he couldn't harm anybody.  
Then she realised that as far as Angel knew, Dawn was actually Buffys' kid sister. He had trouble taking in the fact that most of his memories were created by monks but he promised Buffy that he would treat Dawn no differently. Then there was Glory _slash _Ben and she explained how she had to sacrifice herself to close the portal that Dawn was the key too and his grip on her hand tightened.  
He laughed quite a bit when she told him about the song and dance demon but then he got all serious when she mentioned that that is when she told her friends that she wasn't in a hell dimension at all, she was in heaven. Or her conception of heaven anyway. He had another hard time believing that Willow went super evil and almost destroyed the world but Buffy explained about Willow and Tara and he began to understand. He defiantly saw Willow in a different light after that.  
He pretty much knew all there was to know about the potential Slayers and the First. She cleared a few hazy details up about Caleb though.

"There's a brunette girl down there called Kennedy who is Willows' new girlfriend. Faith made with the smoochies with the High School principal and it turns out Spike killed his Mom. She was one of the two Slayers he killed when he was all y'know...Spike."

"Well if we're keeping score I think it's pretty safe to say you've blown me out of the water," Angel said. "I don't know how you do it Buffy, you're so strong..."-

Buffy started, she took her eyes out of his gaze out of embarrassment, "I'm really not, I have to be honest. There were times this year when I finally got a turn to use my own bath tub, and I'd dunk my head under the water to wet my hair and face and the thought that I could just stay under the water and in about five minutes my problems would just go away. I mean I've drowned before. A second time would've been..."-

"Yeah but you got your head out of the water. There's the strength." She met his gaze.

"Yeah I guess."

"You know you could stay here tonight?" Angel proposed without looking into her eyes. A night in Angels' arms seemed like the perfect reward for her, "if you want?"

"That would be perfect." Angel cleared the boxes off of the bed and climbed into bed with his darling Buffy. Her soaking wet hair was only damp now but he didn't care. Her hair could be on fire and he wouldn't let her out of his arms for anything. He kissed her on the head and said something into her ear.

"Buffy?" he asked in an almost in-audible whisper.

"Um-hm?" she replied. Her eyes were closed and she felt herself drifting to sleep.

"Do you um... think you might be cookies?"  
Everything got fuzzy after that, the feel of Angels' body next to hers dissolved and the hotel room went along with him. She felt her head vibrating as the car she was in pulled up into a stop. Kennedy was nudging Buffy on the shoulders and Xander was knocking on the window. She didn't want to open her eyes, she just wanted Angel.

"Buffy wake up?" Xander said loudly from outside the passenger window. Buffy reluctantly and groggily opened her eyes and she was met by the sight of a huge parking lot filled with expensive cars that was surrounded by tall skyscrapers.

"What is it?" she mumbled.

"We're here," Nicholas announced. Buffy turned around and looked out the rear view window and spotted a black rectangular sign with huge white letters that read,  
_**Wolfram & Hart  
**__**Attorneys at Law**_.

To be continued...


	5. Episode 5: The Reunion Part 2

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse, I am just a fan)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, episode 4  
The Reunion: part 2

[-] Chapter 1

Angels' office was silent, still. The walls were masked with red and black paint and the doors leading to the lobby were closed. He could make out shadows of people as they passed through the translucent glass in the door. Weapons like daggers and swords hung on the wall behind his desk where he sat with his feet up looking through a case file. He had all of his curtains closed during the day even though his office and the entire building was fitted with necro tempered glass which protected the vampires in Wolfram & Hart from bursting into flames and then dusting. He didn't want to kid himself.  
The sounds of Wesley and Gun chattering loudly outside his door alerted him. They walked in and continued their conversation. "Suing us! That's a tad extreme," Wesley exclaimed holding a similar file to Angels'.

Gun began, "apparently not Wes, according to the clan it's _supposed _to be common knowledge that the eastern Krolaks don't associate with western Krolaks and by putting the two leaders in the same conference room was an insult and..."-

"Don't you knock?" Angel asked without lifting his head to look at them. Wesley paused and looked at Angel.

"Uh, sorry we got kind of um...caught up." Angel took his feet off the desk and sat properly in his chair.

"So we're being sued...again. What's that now like three times in just over a month?" He asked.

"Five...actually," Gun replied, Wesley shot him a look that seemed like '_Dumbass'_, "Or y'know, three works, if it gets you to sleep at night."

"What gets me to sleep at night, Gun is peace and quiet. Something this room is seriously lacking. Did you come here just to rant to each other at the front of my desk or what?" Angel was in a bad mood.

_'Rude' _Wesley thought. "Actually I have something for you," he placed the file onto Angels' desk. He picked up in one hand and read the label. **'Werewolf attacks.'** "There have been a string of attacks for the duration of this month's lunar cycle, thought you might like to take a look."

"Good Wes, I'll get right on it." Gun and Wesley exchanged a look and turned towards the door to leave. Fred burst in with a smile on her face. She had her dark brown her flowing down onto a white lab coat.

"Fred," Wesley said with a smile that seemed to continue to grow. _God she's beautiful _he thought. Seconds later Knox followed Fred into Angels' office wearing the same smile as she was. "And...Knox," Wesley announced as his smile depleted into an invisible frown.

"Doesn't anybody knock?" Angel mumbled.

Fred began, "oh, sorry I didn't think...well you know me," Fred struggled for words, she also noticed Angels' bad mood. "I just thought that you might want to know how things are going with..."-

"Not right now Fred," Angel said cutting her off. She simply nodded and her smile faded like Wesleys'. They all turned to leave when Angels' phone began ringing. He exhaled and picked the phone up. "Angel. Harmony calm down. What? Where?" Angel threw the phone back into its slot and went for the door. They all followed him except for Knox who seemed to slip into the shadows somewhere. Harmony met Angel outside his office door which led to the lobby. There was a hustle of demons in the centre of the wooden platform in the lobby. Some were being thrown across the room while others flailed about their arms like they were fighting. "Harmony what's going on?" Harmony Kendall was a petite blonde woman who looked like she should be in her senior year of High School. Of course that's because that was the year she was made into a vampire. She was now working for Angel as his assistant and secretary.

"I don't know boss. I was booking an appointment with one of your demony clients and then every demon seemed to y'know," she made a lunging gesture with her arms, "as soon as the front doors opened," Harmony said. Angel fought his way through the crowd of demons. He assumed they were all fighting each other until he got to the centre. He could scarcely believe what he was seeing.

_That's not possible. How could she be here? Why would she be here? _He thought. A beautiful blonde woman, a petite yet bitchy and younger brunette girl and a man with an eye patch seemed to be the centre of attention. "Buffy?" he whispered. She looked at him just after finishing a sideways high kick to a member of the Kunari demon clan. The surrounding demons actually weren't fighting. They were watching the battle between Buffy and the Leader of the Kunaris'. He watched the spectacle for a moment, watching his Buffy doge almost every one of the demons attacks until she plunged her famous Mr. Pointy into the demons heart. He dropped dead onto the floor and blood spilled into every crack in the wooden panels. The surrounding demons stopped cheering and scattered, some out the door and others towards random offices. Buffy looked around. She met Angels' gaze.

"Woops?" she winced.

"Buffy what do you think you're doing?" his loving feelings changed to angry ones which didn't help his attitude that day. He came right up to her face.

"It's nice to see you too," she replied into his eyes as she straightened out her jacket and stowed the stake away into the back pocket in her pants. They gazed at each other, their eyes showed anger and longing.

"This is a little too dramatic for me... I'll just be y'know...elsewhere," Kennedy said as she helped Xander to his feet and they joined a pompous Nicholas with his chest out admiring the buildings' lobby and a cowering Willow who didn't understand a thing and didn't even know what demons looked like until now.

"Do you know what you just did? You've probably lost Wolfram & Hart the respect and business of some of its most influential clients!" Gun exclaimed. He was wearing a grey suit with a blue tie and holding a briefcase.

"That guy attacked me; you want to just take it as he pummels me on your precious Wolfram & Harts lobby floor? I don't think so," Buffy replied in a voice just hirer than a whisper. Angel and Buffy never took their gaze off each other even as she argued with Gun.

"It's always a pleasure Buffy but um... why _are_ you here?" Wesley asked with his red shirts sleeves tucked away into his trousers.

"Nice to see you too Wes," she replied.

"My office. Now," Angel spat.

"Lead the way," Buffy retaliated. Fred waved to Willow who was standing next to Xander. Willow just gave a weak smile. She'd never seen Fred before in her life, or so she thought. They all followed Angel into his office where he stood behind his desk and leaned on the wall behind him. Buffy stood in front of his desk with her arms folded and everybody else fanned out across the room. Xander never left poor Willows' side. She felt like she was in a room full of strangers.

_Gotta' get me an office _Xander thought as he looked around the room and whistled. They stood in silence for a while. Angel spoke first,

"Why are you here?" he asked intensively. Buffy looked up from the floor.

"I came to see if you needed a bathroom attendant at Evil 'R' Us which still seems still pretty evil to me," she replied scornfully.

"I didn't mean for it to sound that way," he replied.

"No I think it sounded just as you wanted it to."

"Buffy what I think Angel meant was that you should have called ahead," Wesley added. She spun around and looked at him.

"I tried, didn't get too far." She turned back to Angel, "turns out your secretary, when she hears my name, has a nasty habit of hanging up on me."

"Harmony!" Angel bellowed. Harmony entered Angels' office and stood right by the door. Her bleach blonde hair hung over a bright pink dress.

"Sorry bossy, I was told not to let the Slayer through to you," she said.

"Harmony's your secretary?" Xander laughed. "You mean she can actually understand how a computer works?" Harmony shot Xander a look.

"Told...by who?" Angel was furious. Buffy knew that something else was worrying him or angering him that couldn't possibly just be her arrival. The elevator behind Angel dinged and the wooden doors slid open. They revealed an attractive brunette woman wearing a sleek maroon dress and heels.

"By me," she said as she stepped out of Angels' elevator.

"Who the hell are you?" Buffy asked loudly looking the woman up and down.

"Eve?" Nicholas said from behind the couch that Fred was sitting on.

"Who the hell is this guy?" Angel asked referring to Nicholas and trying not to sound as jealous as he thought Buffy did.

"Nicky? Nicky Reynolds?" Eve asked. The two walked up to each other and double kissed each other on the cheek. "My god I haven't seen you since..."-

"Marcus' sacrifice 1992," Nicholas finished her sentence for her. "You look smashing."

"You don't look so bad yourself. I heard a rumour you got the Slayer gig," she said.

Nicholas began, "Well yes I..."-

"Uh hello!" Angel said clearing his throat. Eve turned around and looked Angel up and down.

"Sorry big guy, just catching up with an old friend," Eve said as she perched herself on Angels' desk in front of Buffy. She studied Buffy from her shoes to the tallest strand of hair on her head. "Hmm," she said and she turned her head towards Angel. Buffy raised her eyes in annoyance and she nearly flung for the little bitch.

"What's this about you not letting Buffy talk to me?" Angel asked.

"I guess _she _wouldn't stay away for long. Here's the skinny hotshot, Senor Partners didn't want their new CEO fraternising with the enemy. They thought it would be in the best interest of both the Slayers and you if you kept your distance."

"Wait, uh... the enemy?" Fred chirped from behind. Buffy turned around and smiled a wide smile at Fred. Fred replied with a smile just as big.

"Well not _this_ Wolfram & Harts enemy, but she is in every other Wolfram & Hart in almost every other dimension," Eve replied.

"Oh goodie, I'm famous," Buffy said with a childish and sarcastic smile.

"That's it, you can go now," Angel said.

"You never cease to amaze me with your manners," Eve replied as she got off the desk. She turned to Nicholas, "we'll catch up soon."

"Love to," Nicholas replied as Eve went out the glass doors that led to the lobby.

"Somebody clean up the demon carcass in the lobby!" she exclaimed just before the doors came to a close. Angel exhaled heavily and sat down in his chair. Buffy swished her honey blonde her out of her eyes and looked at Angel.

"Sorry to be such an inconvenience, but I won't stay long." She turned to Fred, "Fred will you go see if you can find Lorne?" Fred nodded and headed for the door.

"What do you need Lorne for?" Angel asked. The tension in the room died down when Buffy started telling Angel what had happened to her since she left the Hyperion Hotel. From Rona leading six girls to their deaths in the graveyard and Faiths' new tattoo, to Willow trying to resurrect somebody from Sunnydale.

"When we found her by the edge of the crater she had no idea who we were or who anybody was," Buffy concluded. Angel looked over at Willow who was sitting beside Xander and Kennedy listening contently to his and Buffy's conversation because they mentioned her name. She didn't have a clue who Rona was, who Faith was and that she lived in Ohio on something called a Hellmouth.

"And you think if she sings for Lorne he'll be able to tell you what happened?" he asked sceptically.

"Well Giles thinks, but pretty much yeah." Buffy spotted the werewolf file on Angels' desk. "Werewolves huh?"

"Yeah, there's been a few attacks downtown," Angel looked grim, like he hadn't slept for days and he had a good reason.

"Angel is there something you're not telling me?" Buffy asked. She knew something was bothering him and she'd had enough of his secrecy. But before he could answer Fred and Lorne burst through Angels' office door. The tall green demon was dressed in a bright orange suit and a black hat that stood on the end of his bright red small horns. He looked at Buffy, Willow, Xander and Kennedy and smiled.

"Well when Fredikins said that you all came back looking for me I can't say I weren't bursting with pride," he held his arms out to Buffy. "Come here!" he said with a laugh. Buffy liked Lorne, he made the days she spent at the Hyperion a little easier and so she laughed also and gave him a hug.

"It's good to see you!" Buffy said into his orange suit jacket.

"You two pumpkin," he replied. He released Buffy and she sat down on the small sofa next to Fred and Lorne sat beside her. He looked into the faces of everyone in the room. "Well you could cut the tension in this room with a nail file."  
Angel retold Buffys' story to Lorne and he listened contently and occasionally shot glances over to Willow who looked back at him wearing an uneasy expression.  
"Well I'll give it my best shot but I uh, can't promise anything," he said after Angel finished the story.

"I know, that's all we ask," Buffy replied.

"Well first I think we need to give the girl some room. Wes, Gun and Fredikins, take Kennedy and the weird guy with the sunglasses to go and get some coffee while we try to sort things out over here," Lorne proposed. At first Kennedy protested but Wesley lured her away with talk of Wolfram & Harts weapon collection. Fred was about to follow her friends out of the room when she stopped by the door and turned to Angel.

"Angel, can we talk?"

"Sure Fred," Angel replied.

"Over here," Fred urged. Angel got up from his desk and moved out of earshot from everybody else.

"What is it Fred?" he asked.

"What are gonna tell Buffy about..."-

Angel cut her off, "Buffy doesn't need to know about _that_. She's got enough on her plate right now. Do me a favour and keep tabs on your new _project_?" Fred exhaled and frowned.

"Angel, you know I don't like lying to people and Buffy has been nothing but nice to me..."-

"You won't have to lie if she doesn't find out. Please Fred, I'm asking you to do this for me," he pleaded. She wasn't happy about what he was asking her to do but even despite Angels' bad attitude this morning she still trusted him with her life.

"You're the boss," she breathed. She didn't wait for Angel to reply in case he said something that might make her change her mind. She glided across the room and out of the doors.

"Everything okay?" Buffy asked.

"Everything's fine," Angel lied. Angel and Buffy were standing right behind Lorne who was kneeling down in front of Willow who was sitting on a tiny sofa chair.

"So you don't remember your big green karaoke machine pal Lorne Willow tree?" Lorne asked saddened.

"Uh...sorry, no" she replied.

"Well let's see what we can do about that. I'm going to try to see what happened to that noggin' of yours but I need you to sing for me, or you could hum a tune whatever your preference."

"Nobody said anything about me having to sing!" Willow exclaimed. Xander suddenly began beaming.

_Thank god some pieces of Willow are still there, she never did like to sing. Or perform of any kind what so ever _he thought.

"That's just how I read people doll, that's the way it is I'm afraid," Lorne attempted to reassure her.

"I don't even think I know any songs to sing," Willow said whilst nervously toying with her fingers.

"Hmm, how about..." Lorne began to sing beautifully:  
_"For all those times you stood by me,  
for all the truth that you made me see..._

You were my strength when I was weak,  
You were my voice when I couldn't speak,  
You were my eyes when couldn't see,  
You saw the best there was in me!" 

Willow shook her head from side to side as if to tell Lorne that she didn't know the words. "What? That was Celine Dion, oh peanut how badly did you hurt that head of yours." Willow began wracking her brains for a song or tune that she could perform for the green demon in front of her and she found a song buried somewhere in her brain. She didn't know how she knew it, but it was familiar and warm.

_"Christmas time is here,  
Happiness and cheer,  
Fun for all that children call,  
their favourite time of the year..." _Xander had begun to allow tears to fall from the eye that wasn't covered by an eye patch.

"What is that?" Lorne asked.

"That's _Christmas Time is Here _from Charlie Brown," the gang noticed Xander's' tears "Every Christmas Will and me would catch the Christmas special. I can't believe she remembers the song." Xander grasped Willow by the hand and she didn't pull away. She continued singing and Lorne now began to concentrate. __

Snowflakes in the air  
Carols everywhere  
Olden times and ancient rhymes  
Of love and dreams to share

Sleigh bells in the air  
Beauty everywhere  
Yuletide by the fireside  
And joyful memories there

Christmas time is here  
We'll be drawing near  
Oh, that we could always see  
Such spirit through the year  
Oh, that we could always see  
Such spirit through the year..." Willow finished singing and tried to read Lorne's' expression. He was like a blank canvas...but a green one.

"Anything?" Buffy asked.

"Nada my perky friend. Whatever happened to Willow tree at that crater," he turned around and looked up into Buffys' and Angels' worried expression, "it's buried deep. But I did manage to get something. It's not her that's buried it, something else is making sure she doesn't tell _you_ something doll," he was addressing Buffy.

"But Lorne you usually get an image of a person's future when they sing for you, you got nothing?" Angel asked.

"Well just a big bright white," Angel and Buffy looked at each other, "but that's not uncommon when I can't read a person."  
Wesley entered the room then and shut the door behind him.

"I left Ms. Kennedy with Gun. They seem to have a lot in common," Wesley began.

"Kennedy's gay Wes," Buffy corrected him while trying to hide an amused smile.

"Ah, well no matter," Wesley joined the group around Willow. "Lorne, you said all you saw was a 'big bright white' correct?"

"Hand on heart, well actually my heart is in my butt so hand on liver," Lorne corrected himself.

"Well I have one more thing you could try," he said addressing Buffy, "but it could be dangerous."

"I'll try anything Wes," Buffy said. He turned to Angel.

"A big bright white...ringing any bells?" he asked Angel.

"Um...Wesley no, we haven't even been up there since we got here, it's way too dangerous."

"What better reason than to go up now?" Wesley argued.

"Whoa, wait a minute, what's to dangerous? What bells have been rung?" Buffy tried to understand. Angel turned to look at her, his expression was vague but she could make out he was worried.

"Wesley wants you to go to The White Room."

[-] Chapter 2

Buffy looked to Angel in utter confusion. The white room sounded to her like a Childs' Saturday morning T.V show. But Angel was worried so Buffy tried to take him seriously. "The white room?" she asked.

"Yes," Wesley replied. Buffy waited for him to give an explanation but Wesley only remembered to do so when Buffy shot him a _'well?' _look. "Oh, right. The white room is and inter-dimensional space that we at Wolfram & Hart have access to."

"Okay, so what does this do-hicky thing do?" she asked.

"This _'do-hicky' _is the home of a conduit, an entity that has direct knowledge and access to the Senor Partners and other mystical influences in this reality and others. Since Angel and I have become employed here, we haven't gone up. The last conduit was a little girl; her name was Mesektet and she belonged to an order called the Ra-Tet. I'm sure you re-call last years' incident with the Los Angeles sunlight?" Wesley seemed over excited as he was speaking. He was so eager to go up into the White Room he could barely contain himself.

"Just what I read in the news, rain of fire, eternal darkness, you guys must have had your hands full," Buffy said addressing Angel, Lorne and Wesley.

"Well the demon responsible, The Beast, killed Mesektet in order to perform said ritual on the sun. I think Angel fears that the new conduit, if there is one, may not be as _innocent _as the little girl...for lack of a better word." Buffy turned to Angel.

"I appreciate that you're looking out for me Angel, but...it's Willow. I have to try," she persuaded.

Angel began stuttering, "B-Buffy I..."-

"Angel," was all she needed to say as she cut him off mid-sentence. That simple five letter word said everything she wanted it to.

"Well I guess I'll make myself scarce, Lorney no likey the big guy upstairs. If it all works out though you come say goodbye okay pumpkin?" Lorne said getting up from his crouched position and smiling at Willow. Buffy nodded as Lorne left the room leaving an orange glow in the window.

"Wesley will you find Xander?" Buffy asked while helping Willow to her feet.

"What about Ms. Kennedy?" He asked puzzled.

"Willow just needs people _familiar _around her," Buffy said hiding her face. Wesley furrowed his brows at Buffy and glanced at Angel before exiting the room. Buffy turned to Angel.

"So how do we get to the White Room?" Buffy asked. Angel led Buffy to the elevator in the lobby and they stood in silence waiting for Wesley to return with Xander. He was holding a coffee cup and was in polite conversation with Wesley.

"Look Buff," he held his coffee up into Buffys' line of vision, "they have moca's," he smiled. Buffy didn't smile or even reply, she just looked at him. "I'm guessing things didn't go well?"  
Buffy filled Xander in on what had happened since he and Kennedy left. She told him about Lorne seeing just a bright white expanse of light and that Wesley suggested they take a trip to the White Room. Wesley took over then to explain to Xander just what the White Room was. He didn't ask why Buffy hadn't called Kennedy back when she had called him. Xander himself knew that when it came to Willow, Kennedy was unpredictable, a liability and she could get them all killed. "Let's get this over with," Xander said in conclusion. Wesley pressed the elevator door and they watched as the arrow above the doorway counted down and pointed to a label that read _LOBBY_. The doors opened and they stepped aside when as many as five or six well dressed lawyers exited the elevator.

"Afternoon Mr. Angel!"  
"It's good to see you Mr. Angel!"  
"Looking sharp Mr. Angel!" They all gave their greeting to Angel as they left the elevator and dispersed across the lobby.  
The group got into the elevator...barely and Wesley turned to face the wall. He pressed a sequence of buttons and the elevator began to ascend. They reached the top floor when a button, vastly bigger than any of the others, shimmered onto the wall.

"Willow, if you would," he gestured Willow to press the button.

"That's me right?" Willow asked Xander. Xander nodded and Willow reached over and pressed the button. It flashed and disappeared. Willow pulled her hand back like lightning when she saw it disappear and turned to Buffy for reassurance.

"Now what?" Buffy asked.

"Three," Wesley said.

"Two," Angel continued. Before any of them could say one, the wooden floor beneath their feet disappeared. It seemed like they were standing on fresh air, or floating depending on how you looked at it. Buffy covered her eyes from the light when the walls of the elevator disintegrated. The white went on for miles, or it looked like it could but you would never get anywhere. There was no smell, nothing to touch and it was silent. You couldn't really rely on your eyes either Buffy thought, this looked like the kind of place that would play tricks on you. "Stay alert," Angel said breaking the silence.

"The White room huh?" Buffy asked, "wonder where they got the name..." she mumbled. _It all happened at once, she was there the next just looking around and then she fell to her knees _Buffy thought as though she was telling herself the story. It's true; Willow simply fell to the ground. Without warning. She just dropped. "Wesley! I told you this was a bad idea," Angel said as he dropped to Willows side like everyone else.

"Will?" Xander said shaking her by the shoulders.

"She's just unconscious I think," Wesley said reassuringly.

"You make that sound like it's a good thing Wes!" Xander said in anger.

"Better than dead or wounded wouldn't you agree?" Wesley retaliated. Xander shot him an angry glance.

"What's happening?" Buffy said as Willow slowly started to fade.

"I'm not sure," Angel replied.

"Well get sure!" Buffy exclaimed. Willow became transparent until she ultimately faded into the ground that they were stepping on. Buffy placed her hands on the area were Willow was just lying when she abruptly stood up and reached for her stake from her back pocket. She heard something in the vast nothingness. The pitter-patter of expensive shoes echoed throughout the abyss. Angel heard it too and was on his feet waiting for the silhouette to come properly into view. Wesley and Xander soon followed when they heard it. Their senses were not as quick as Buffys' and Angels'.  
A middle aged man with a grey tint to his hair entered the white void.

"Well, well, well, you just don't stay dead do you?" Angel said.

"I try my best Mr. Angel," the man replied.

Wesley gasped, "Good lord...that's..."-

"Holland Manners," Angel said interrupting Wesley.

"Um, hi, little lost here, who are you?" Buffy asked in a curious tone.

"Oh do forgive me Ms. Summers, my name is Holland Manners. Former CEO for the Los Angeles branch of Wolfram & Hart," Holland announced proudly.

"And you're the conduit?" Angel asked inquisitively. Holland laughed.

"Never let your eyes deceive you Mr. Angel," Holland winked.

"So are you or aren't you?" Wesley asked. Holland laughed again.

"Your guess is as good as mine Mr. Wyndam-Pryce. I believe I know why you are here," Holland Manners stepped to the left to reveal a long wooden conference table with seven chairs. Holland gestured them to take a seat.

"Where is Willow?" Xander said loudly to grab everybody's attention. It was the first thing he'd said since arriving in the white room.

"Mr. Harris if you'll just take a seat..."- Holland started but Buffy cut him off.

"No Xander's right, how do you know his name? Or my name for that matter? We don't know anything about you and you seem to have read the Sunnydale Encyclopaedia. So unless you give us Willow we aren't going anywhere with you," she asserted. The conference desk and chairs all disappeared as Holland waved his hand and took on a blank yet furious expression.

"Little girl you don't know what you're dealing with," Holland spat.

"Yeah well why don't we find out," Buffy retaliated. She was willing to do anything for Willow.

"Buffy!" Angel warned. A black mist shot from Holland's' hand and engulfed Angel as he rushed to Buffys' aid. He was paralysed but was still standing up and was able to speak but not move. Holland came within nose touching distance of Buffy and she didn't even flinch. She remained in constant eye contact with the conduit. You had to admire her bravery...or foolishness depending on what happened next.

"Here, in this space? You're nothing. Down there you may be some big hotshot with your Slayer army but up here you're just a cockroach under the feet of Gods young lady. Do I make myself clear?"

"Where. Is. Willow?" Buffy spat in his face. Holland's eyes widened and Buffy saw the twinge in his jaw. He was so fast, faster than any Slayer reflex she had. He gripped her by the fibres of her jacket and tossed her about a hundred feet from where they were standing like she was a ragdoll and he was an Undertaker. She adapted a braced position in the air and prepared herself for the moment her body would crash to the floor. It didn't help much though, it still stung like hell all over and she skidded for another twenty feet on her back with her arms covering her face. Xander lunged for Holland and Wesley pulled a small blade from his back pocket.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you fella's," Wesley and Xander stopped when Holland spoke and in the distance they saw Buffy get to her feet. The impact had torn her jacket and she had a small graze on her forehead, Holland continued, "If she's the almighty Slayer and I could accomplish that then just imagine what I could do to you." Wesley and Xander looked at each other and Wes put his weapon away. Holland waited for Buffy to walk back into the centre.

"Okay point taken, your Mr. In charge guy. But where is Willow?" She asked sternly. Holland just smiled tauntingly. He waved his hand and suddenly Angel could move again and the conference desk and chairs reappeared. Holland's smile faded.

"Take a seat." The gang abided and sat down in a chair with Holland at the head of the table. By the time everybody had sat down Wesley noticed two unoccupied seats at the opposite end of the table from Holland. He assumed one seat was for Willow. He turned to Holland.

"Um, there is one empty seat?" Wesley stated.

"Two empty seats," Holland corrected.

"But um... Willow is..."-

"Ms. Rosenberg will not be joining us," Holland stated. "We're ready for you now!" he called out. Xander looked to Buffy and spotted she was just as confused as he was.

"I think it's just us..."- Angel said before Holland raised his hand to cut him off. Angel glanced back at the empty chairs and saw a static black mist hovering around the chairs. The mist parted into two separate clouds and the static in the black mist turned electric red. The mist took the form of a human person sitting in the chair, one a woman and one a man. The mist took form then, little features came into full view and the whole group, except the conduit, was speechless.  
Buffy first saw the woman's mist come into form and she grasped her mouth for fear of crying out. It was her mother, sitting five ft away. Joyce Summers. Buffy's heart and stomach churned at the sight of her mother. But she became distracted though at the sight of somebody long dead too. Billy Fordom. Ford.

"Mom? Ford?" Buffy asked under her breath. But Joyce never moved, or budged except to get up from her chair and start pacing around the table, Ford followed soon after. Buffy turned to Angel who was in complete confusion too. You see when Angel found that the static mist was taking form, the woman become his beloved Cordelia. The man took the shape of Doyle. They just sat staring blankly at Holland until they got up from their seats and began pacing around the table in an exact oval.

"Cordie? Doyle?" he said. Buffy shot Angel a look when she heard him say that. They were seeing different people, why? Holland seemed amused. Xander looked at the two figures and seemed in pain, he wanted to look at them but didn't at the same time. His beloved Anya occupied the woman's seat, her blonde shoulder length her was mesmerising. The man shape took the form of one of Xanders' oldest friends, their first soldier down, Jesse. Xander didn't have the strength to speak to them; he just held his breath and stared as they paced around the table. Wesley was in a similar state to Xander, in complete awe feeling love and fear itself. Wesley too saw Cordelia as the woman but in the man he saw his father, Roger Wyndam-Price. He tried not to stare as they paced the table. His education as a watcher told him that this was all just a trick and that he should not indulge.

"Why have you called us here?" they asked Holland in unison, "we do not take kindly to being summoned."

_"Buffy, can you hear me?" _the sound of Willows' voice in Buffys' head took her by surprise and made her take her gaze off of her mother and Ford.

_"Willow? Where are you?" _Buffy asked,_ "You faded away."_

"That doesn't matter and I never faded Buffy, they took me," Willow said.__

"Who took you?"

"Buffy, if I'm right you're in a huge space that is nothing but white?"

"Yeah Will, Angel and Wesley call it the White Room. As soon as we came here you fell unconscious."

"The white room? They told me it was Purgatory," Willow said more to herself than Buffy._ "Buffy. Who is in the room with you?" _Willow asked sternly. This was obviously a business call.  
_  
"Purgatory? Uh...Angel, Wesley, Xander, a guy called Holland Manners and my Mom and Ford," _Buffy answered telepathically trying not to make her mental voice croak as she mentioned her mother.  
_  
_Willow began,_ "Buffy your Mom and Ford are not who you think they are..."- _

_"Wait, you know who my Mom and Ford are, you have your memory?" _Buffy said cutting Willow off mid-sentence.  
_  
"Yes, Buffy there's no time for that, you have to listen to me!" _Willow was serious and assertive.  
_  
"Okay," _Buffy replied.As Holland tried to charm whatever it was that was taking the form of Buffys' mom and Ford, Willow gave Buffy the cliff-notes version of what happened to her when she left the mansion to go to the Sunnydale crater. She told her about hearing the footsteps behind her before she started the ritual, thinking she saw Oz and Tara in purgatory, being taken on a life journey and everything after that.

_"When you guys found me, it was like I was there, but I wasn't y'know? My memory was there, I was just buried with it,"_ Willow said in conclusion to her story.

_"Will, I'm so sorry I should've been there,"_ Buffy said silently and drooping her head down.

_"It's my fault this happened Buffy, don't blame yourself,"_ Willow reassured. _"Hecate and Osiris, as far as I can tell, take the form of whoever you feel you've failed in life. In your case your mom and Ford."  
_From what Buffy could gather as she spoke to Willow Holland Manners had managed to get Hecate and Osiris to take a seat at the table to discuss negotiations. Buffy hadn't noticed it was her mom, Hecate, who had been doing all the talking. She looked up at her friends, who were still looking like they'd seen a ghost, and then noticed that Ford had been staring at Buffy luridly during hers and Willows' telepathic conversation.

"She's communing with the witch sister," Osiris announced. Hecate turned her head to Buffy. Her mother was so beautiful. Buffy noticed a red tint to her eyes.

"Well the witch is stronger than we thought brother, she must have contacted the Slayer," Hecate announced.

"Cordie, what 'goin on?" Angel asked.

"That's not Cordelia," Buffy spat.

"Smart girl," Osiris announced with an eerie devilish wink and grin.

"Doyle? What's happening?" Angel was so confused and Wesley and Xander were still silent. They hadn't breathed a word.

"Angel, the people sitting at the end of the table, the people you see, the people you _all _see," she said to get Wesleys' and Xanders' attention, "are not who they really are." Buffy got up from her seat but stood in place. The conduit, Holland, got up as if to put Buffy back in her place but Osiris gestured him to sit back down. Buffy cautiously explained to them all what was happening.

"That's it, we're leaving, _**now**_" Angel said but Holland grabbed him by the shoulders of his coat and put him back in his chair.

"Anybody moves and you'll witness what I can truly do!" he exclaimed. Everybody reclaimed their position. Wesley spoke first, he turned to his father.

"Father," he began but noticed his mistake and said, "or whomever you may be, why do you look like my father?"

"I am who you perceive me to be child. I have no quarrel with you, your mystical energies are small and so I will do onto you no harm," Osiris said politely.

"Why did you take Willow?" Xander asked Hecate. Hecate turned around. His Anya was so beautiful. Her hair moved just as it used to and it took all his strength not to ravish her there and then. He knew, though somewhere deep down, that it wasn't Anya. Something had stolen her skin in order to trick him and he would not be fooled.

"The boy is brave brother; he also loves and lusts for me. I will answer your question if you answer mine," Hecate announced proudly. Xander nodded.

"Then I shall go first. Whom do you perceive me to be?" Xander paused, Buffy was positive his version of Hecate was Anya and it ate her up inside that she couldn't end his suffering.

"You look like her," Xander replied.

"Her?" He'd peaked Hecate's curiosity.

"That's two questions, it's my turn," Xander asserted.

"The boy is smart," Osiris added. Hecate nodded angrily. She didn't like being outsmarted.

"Why did you take Willow?" Xander asked for the second and final time. Hecate and Osiris got out of their chairs and started to pace around the table again.

"Your little witch upset the balance for the last time. The first was when she took a powerful player for the apocalypse back to the side of the powers that be," Hecate looked over to Angel. Buffy realised then that her mother, Hecate, meant the time Willow gave Angel his soul back. Hecate continued, "Mr. Angel was supposed to remain as his former self and play for the opposing team in the apocalypse...before the witch intervened." It seemed like Hecate had told her story and now it was Fords', Osiris', turn.

"The witches' mystical energy probed our curiosity so we allowed her to continue her practice. Then came the day the Slayer gave her life to pick up Glorificus's mess around three years ago. That was the day the Slayer was destined to die and the new Slayer, Justine, was called..."- Angel cut him off.

"Justine was a fool." The conduit sent him a large warning look but never lay a finger on him. Angel noticed this.

"Sunnydale California was in turmoil without its Slayer, as it was destined to be, until the witch intervened for a second time and used _**my **_resurrection spell. Her powers were strong and intimidating, it seemed a waste to destroy them and so I granted her wish and returned the Slayer to Sunnydale. I was incredibly angered when she summoned me on the day of the death of her lover who died by natural forces, I refused and I'm ashamed to say, she injured me, badly. My dear sister had to pick up the pieces after her attempt to destroy the planet. But at her level even I wasn't a match for her then. When we heard of the first evils' plan we decided taking on the witch was useless, the first evil would destroy her and her precious Slayer. Until she pulled, as you all say, _'the big wammy of spells_' on the potential Slayers. And the balance tipped off the scale. And then when she tried to resurrect yet another soldier for the powers that be, we had to intervene before the world itself spun into chaos. We reset the balance to a significant extent."

"How? You've unleashed the devil himself onto the planet? Plagues?" Wesley asked.

"We stripped the witch's memory when we returned her to your reality so she would not be able to inform you of our plan before we got to properly execute it," Hecate added smugly. By now they had finished their tale and returned to the table.

"How did you reset the balance?" Angel asked. He received the same glare from Holland.

"The Slayer and the boy already know how," the two said in unison. Xander and Buffy both looked at each other for a moment before it hit them. The look of realisation washed over their face and Buffy said,

"The vampire." Hecate and Osiris both laughed. Xander told Angel and Wesley the story about the vampire in Golden Pines' church and how he wasn't affected by sunlight. Angel tried to hide his smile. The thought that he now might be able to walk around in the day seemed like a blessing until her remembered the damage the vampires of L.A could do now not to mention the vampires of the world.

"So that's it? Vampires are now immune from sunlight?" Angel said trying to hide a smile. Buffy caught the smile and thought of the advantages that it could have on her and Angels' _possible _relationship.

"No," Wesley said before they could answer, he continued, "there are ancient laws of this dimension that even Gods have to follow. For example when the shadow men made the Slayer rule, until Willows magic changed it of course." Osiris seemed furious that Wesley had managed to see right through them immediately but didn't really react on it. Instead he said,

"Correct. For every Slayer there is one of these vampires, one that is not affected by sunlight. They are stronger and faster..." Buffy knew perfectly fine how strong they were, "...and it doesn't matter how many you kill. Another one will be called. One blessed with additional skill to take on the Slayer army," Osiris concluded.

"Wait, how do we know the difference between the vamps?" Xander asked.

"Usually the special vampire called is in the same area as a Slayer. For example there are a lot of them in the city around your manor because of the amount of Slayers you have," Hecate added.

"So that means that there is a Slayer in Golden Pines?" Buffy asked the room but it was obvious, they knew it too.

"Your witch will be returned to you as soon as you leave this place and her memory will be restored after her first slumber. We'll be seeing you," Hecate and Osiris said in unison. The shapes of Joyce and Ford, Anya and Jesse, Roger Wyndam- price and Cordelia and Doyle and Cordelia turned back into their previous state of dark static mist until it disappeared in the white nothingness. So many thoughts and questions were running through everybody's mind.  
The sound of the conduits loud clapping echoed throughout the entire White Room.

"Well I think that went quite well don't you?" Holland asked, "Meeting adjourned." The group became overwhelmed with the white light. It was blinding and deafening somehow. Wesley soon felt the familiar feeling of claustrophobia. They were all back in the elevator...including Willow. Xander and Buffy lunged at her with arms as wide as the elevator itself.

"What happened?" Willow asked holding her head. They all remembered that Willow would only regain her memory after she'd slept. The group laughed and for a moment things felt okay. It didn't last for long. Buffy and Angel were worried and nervous about the coming task of dealing with these new super vamps. He couldn't hide it though; Angel was dying to thrust his hand out in the sunlight to see if he was one of these new vampires. Buffy caught the look.

"I hope so too," she said under her breath at him. It was only after a moment that they noticed the elevator weren't moving. Wesley turned to the wall that had the buttons for each level of Wolfram & Hart and noticed a new flashing red sign in the place of the White Room button. It read _CODE 7. _Xander spotted it.

"What's a code seven?" he asked.

"A code seven is mass evacuation and lock down, something's in the building," Wesley replied wearing a worried yet ready expression.

"Then we get the hell out right?" Xander replied.

"No, Fred was in lab working on..."- before Wesley could finish Angel shot him a look and Wesley changed the end of his sentence, "... her new project. She won't have heard the alarm." Wesley began tinkering with the controls and the elevator suddenly began descending to the lobby.

"Okay so we get Fred and get out," Buffy suggested. Angel turned to Buffy.

"No, I get Fred, you all get out," he asserted. Angel already knew that Wesley was coming with him anyway but he would not let Buffy go no matter what.

"Angel what aren't you telling me?" she asked angrily. She thought he had no right to keep things from her... not with their history. Before he could reply the elevator bell dinged and the doors slid open revealing a dark lobby lit by one single huge light on the ceiling that was for emergencies only. The building seemed empty, quiet and still. You could hear a pin drop if you listened hard enough. They stepped out of the elevator and Buffy reached for her stake. She could hear growling from the upper levels. Suddenly a door labelled _LAB ACCESS, TECHNITIONS ONLY _swung open though the corridor that also led to Angels' office.

"I really don't think we should have come this way, there are emergency exits in the lab," Fred said addressing somebody Buffy couldn't yet see nor hear. Then she heard that familiar voice and she almost dropped her stake in shock. Xander noticed it too.

"Pet, we have to make sure your ninny boss Angel heard the..."- the voice of a British man replying to Fred's sentence stopped as he turned the corner into the Lobby. His long sleeve muscular black shirt and tight leather jeans radiated from the emergency light above. He laid eyes on Buffy.

"Buffy?" he asked.

"Spike?" Buffy replied with a shocked smile.

"Oh crap," Fred mumbled.

[-] Chapter 3

Fred dropped her head into her hands and shot Angel an apologetic look. He didn't react. Willow didn't have a clue what was happening, as far as she knew Spike was just another Lawyer. Xander was eyeing Spike up and down; possibly looking for any sign of smoke and mirrors or wires. Spike just looked at Buffy, marvelling at her and she did the same. The last thing she had said to him was 'I love you' and then he was either crushed or dusted as far as she knew. She ripped her eyes away from Spike to turn to Angel who was standing behind her with his hands on his sides. He refused to make eye contact. "This is it isn't?" Buffy asked angrily.

"What, I don't-..." Buffy cut him off before he could reply.

"The thing you wouldn't tell me about, the reason you were so angry when I showed up this morning? This is it isn't it. You brought him back," Buffy said into his eyes. He still refused to meet her gaze which told her that she was right.

"I never _brought _him back, he just kinda showed up," Angel argued at the lobby floor.

"Why didn't you call me?" she asked. She turned to Spike, "why didn't _**you **_call me?"

"Hey, don't look at me love the ninny told me you were in Rome," Spike said raising his hands in a sign of surrender.

"You lied to me," Buffy said turning back to Angel. The hurt in her voice was unmistakable. He'd heard it before, caused it a lot of the time. She sounded just as she did when they broke up five years ago in the Sunnydale sewers just before prom.

He briefly flashed back.  
"You-you should be with someone who can take you into the light... someone who can make love to you," he said to Buffy whilst fighting the sting of tears behind his eyes. She came towards him.

"I don't care about that," she said.

"You will," he replied bluntly. "And children-..."

"_Children? _Can you say 'jumping the gun', I killed my goldfish," she argued.

"Today, but you have n-no idea how fast it goes Buffy, before you know it you'll want it all. A normal life." He was beginning to lose his battle with his tears.

"I'll never have a normal life," she argued again.

"Right, because you'll always be the Slayer, but that's all the more reason you should have a normal relationship instead of this, this _freak show_." He saw the pain his words had caused her after he concluded his last sentence. "I didn't mean that." Buffy turned away from.

"I gotta go," she said walking away. He grabbed her by her upper arm and forced her to look at him.

"I'm sorry, Buffy...you know how much I love you...it kills me to say this."

"Then don't. Who're you to tell me what's right for me? You think I haven't thought about this?" she pleaded.

"Have you? Rationally?"

"No," she turned away from him, causing her blonde her to whisk through the sewer air, "No of course not I'm just some corny little school girl right?"

"I'm trying to do what's right here, okay I'm trying to think with my head instead of my heart."

"Heart?" Buffy stepped towards him, "you have a heart? It isn't even beating."

"Don't" he pleaded.

"Don't what? Don't love you? I'm sorry you know what; I didn't know I got a choice in that. I'm never gonna change, _I'll never change. _**I can't change. **I want my life to be with you..." They stared at each other for a brief moment, lost in each other's eyes.

"I don't." Buffy wished she was dreaming after she heard what Angel said. It had to be a dream, she loved the boy in front of her, and she would give her life, mind, body and soul for him. She felt emotionally ill.

"You d-don't wanna b-be with me?" she stammered croakily.

Angel came back to reality and was overwhelmed at Buffys' expression; it was exactly the same as it was then. Filled with pain, despair, anger and betrayal. He couldn't stand it. He held his hand out to Buffys' shoulder and she backed away from him as though his touch was deadly. Buffy feared that if she allowed him to touch her, he would melt away all her anger.

"You touch me and I'll kill you," she said without making eye contact. They both allowed their tears to flow, unconscious to the audience that was watching their quarrel. The sound of heavily booted footsteps echoed from up onto Wolfram & Harts' first floor balcony that overlooked the lobby. As many as fifteen demons had been watching them. Their skin was scaled and red. Marble white horns stretched from the foreheads, over their bald head and two the back of their ears. Their three inch long tusks growled at them. Each demon was heavily armed with large metallic axes and swords.

"Not if I kill 'im first," a demon in the middle growled. Buffy recognised the species of demon. She was slightly embarrassed that the demons had watched hers and Angels' little _tiff_. Spike and Fred stalked quickly across the lobby to join everybody else.

"Hey um, didn't I kill you somewhere before?" Buffy asked the fray of demons.

"This is not good," Angel mumbled under his breath.

"Not good?" Xander said tearing his gaze from the demon horde to Angel. "Ya think?"

"You don't understand, this morning Buffy killed the leader of a powerful clan of demons called the Kunari's. I'm guessing they weren't too pleased." Wesley added in a whisper.

"Bugger," was all Spike had to say. They all noticed that they had no hope in hells chance of winning this without weapons. Wesley remembered that he left Kennedy on the top floor weapon department.

"Ms. Kennedy may not have heard the alarm all the way up on the top floor. And she was in the weapons and training department. If we can just get to her than we should be able to make it out of this." Wesley advised.

"We do not wish to harm you Angel," announced one of the demons.

"Wait, huh? How come he gets the get-out-of-jail-free card?" Buffy asked.

"Wolfram & Hart supply and care for our needs, we cannot lose their business now that the Slayer killed our leader. If Mr. Angel will hand the Slayer over to us we will begin our sacrifice elsewhere and let the rest of you get on with your business, do we have a deal?" the new demon leader asked.

_It probably wouldn't shock me if Angel agreed to this; he's such a different person now. One thing he never was was a liar _Buffy thought.

"Or here's another option, you guys leave empty handed and we won't pummel you to death," Xander bragged.

"You stand on the ground where our leader was slain and yet you deem yourselves superior? I will make your death slow and painful, boy." The demon said whilst making a slicing gesture by running his fingernails across his meaty throat. Xander gulped.

"Xander!" Wesley warned. Xander obviously hadn't noticed that they didn't have weapons.

"I can't let you do that," Angel chimed in.

"Then you will all die!" exclaimed the main demon. The demons raised the Axes and within one single bound, leaped over the balcony and landed on two feet onto the lobby floor. Angel signalled the group to make a break for it in the direction of his office. The demons didn't react fast enough and Xander and Spike leaned on the door barring it. The demons pounded on the door trying to get in whilst some hacked away at the walls of the office.

"Bloody hell! Me and pop eye can't hold this door forever!" Spike warned.

"Spike, shut up," Angel replied.

"We don't have the time or the man power to make it back to the elevator, we'll have to take the stairs," Fred announced.

"Fred's right, a Kunari's strength could easily match a Slayer but their hearing is less than that of a human. If we spread out, one team takes Angels' private elevator up to the second floor and makes their way up the stairs to the weapons department whilst another stays down here to try and distract the demons," Wesley suggested.

"Why can't we all just take the elevator?" Fred asked frantically.

"Because as soon as Spike and Xander take their weight off that door, there is no guarantee that we will make it to the elevator before they get in." Buffy silently agreed with Wesleys' plan and took Willow by the shoulders.

"Willow I need you to go with Wesley, Xander and Fred and get Kennedy and weapons okay? You'll be safe," Buffy advised. Angel heard Buffys' plan and swapped positions with Xander so Xander could get to the elevator.

"What're you gonna do?" Willow asked. Buffy felt like Willows' mother, she actually contemplated knocking Willow out just so that when she came to she would be herself again.

"Angel, Spike and I are going to try and hold 'em off, but you have to hurry," Buffy said whilst stroking Willows' hair. Willow nodded and Xander grasped her hand and pulled her over to the elevator. Fred and Wesley began tinkering with the controls and a moment later the elevator doors slid open. They climbed in and pressed the button that would take them to the stairs.

"Ooh, Angel," Wesley said whilst outstretching his hands so the door wouldn't close. He tossed Angel his blade and let the doors shut. Angel caught it in his hand and got up from the door. The banging grew louder. Buffy reached for her stake and took on a defensive stance. Angel did the same.

"Don't I get a knife? A tooth-pick, something?" Spike said as he too got off the door and stood on the opposite side of Buffy from Angel. "Guess not." Spike and Angel put on their vampire face and waited for the doors to swing open and a flood of demons to come pouring in. Spike turned to Buffy. "Slayer, it's good to see you."

"Spike? Now really isn't a good time," she replied. A moment later, a large axe broke the glass and the doors were ripped of the hinges.

"Why can't anybody ever knock?" Angel mumbled.  
_ SECOND FLOOR: STAIRWAY ACCESS _said the voice coming from the speaker on the ceiling of the elevator. Xander stepped out first and looked around the corners of the elevator. The coast was clear and so Willow grabbed his hand in hers and followed him out. Wesley felt a twinge of jealousy as he wish Fred would do something similar with him but he admired her bravery and he allowed her to step out before him. The cream carpet that was all over Wolfram & Hart was still. Fred was so used to seeing it full of demon clients and human lawyers. She realised as they slowly made their way to the staircase that would take them to the third floor that she had never been past the second floor. She spent most of her time in the lab and recently she had barely left it as curing Spike of his ghost-like talents was a time consuming job. And then she had to follow Angels' order to keep Spike and Buffy out of each other's way...which she failed at in the end.  
Wesley led the group through all the little nooks and crannies of Wolfram & Hart until they reached a large staircase, Xander noticed it was just a bit smaller than the one he was used to in the manor. They made their way, silently, up the stairs until they reached a landing littered with about five bodies of well dressed people.

"Ahh, Victor," Wesley whispered to Fred as he looked down onto the bloody face of a well dressed man, "he was in distribution and marketing, good fellow. Ah well." Fred obviously didn't know Victor but the pile of bodies still seemed to shock her. The Kunari's must have entered the building from this floor. How? She didn't know. Wesley stopped abruptly and turned to the group.

"What is it Wes?" Xander asked.

"I may have let something slip my mind. You see when Wolfram & Hart has mass evacuation and lockdown there is no way in and no way out. So the bodies of the unfortunates become...rather like that." Wesley pointed to Victors stirring body on the floor. He was spazzing and it seemed contagious. The other four Lawyers began doing the same.

"Wesley, what's goin' on?" Xander asked as he and Willow back away from the shaking bodies.

"The Zombies," Fred whispered.

"Whoa, pull the brakes and get back in the parking lot, did you just say Zombies?" Xander asked. Fred aimlessly looked around for some unknown force that might offer assistance. Then she spotted it. She took off her lab coat and wrapped it around her fist. Meanwhile Victor had sat up. His eyes were blood shot and his mouth hung open as if gravity affected it more than anything else. Fred had spotted a fire emergency axe on the wall and had smashed the glass. She pulled the red axe out of its, now broken, container and threw it to Wesley. Wesley grabbed it and charged over to Victor.

"What's that guy doing?" Willow asked referring to Wesley. As Victor was getting to his feet Wesley used the side of the axe to make him get back on all fours and then plunged the sharp end right through his neck. The blood spattered up at his face but Victor fell down like a sack of heavy potatoes.

_Thank heavens Zombies are docile creatures _Wesley thought as he hacked away at the other four. When he had finished Fred handed him her lab coat which he used to wipe the blood from his face.

"Y'know Wes, that was kinda hot, in a...none homosexual way but still hot all the same," Xander said with a smile.

"Yes...Well, shall we proceed? I believe the next staircase is just down that corridor," he replied. He led the way now with his axe as though it were his lover. He turned around every corner just in case they came across any other people as unfortunate as Victor. By the time they got up onto the fourth floor there was only one left. Kennedys' loud rock music could be heard from this floor and Wesley rolled his eyes like an old man would to his grandchild. As it seemed, Victor and his associates, were the most unfortunate. Everybody else must have gotten themselves out because Wesley, Fred, Xander and Willow were the only ones around.

_Hopefully Gun and Lorne are outside and safe _Fred thought. The sound of female grunts echoed down the fourth floor stairs.

"Kennedy," Xander announced. He and Willow over took Wesley and Fred and found Kennedy fighting for her life with one of the Kunari demons who must have gotten lost when they broke in. She was looking pretty beat up but if she wasn't in the training and weapons department then she most probably did hear the alarm. Kennedy had just grabbed the demon by the small cloth it was dressed with and launched him through one of the windows of an office. The demon crash landed onto a desk before pulling shard of glass out of his arm. Kennedy found Wesley, Fred, Willow and Xander staring at her from across the small landing.

"Wesley!" Kennedy announced signalling him to toss her the axe before the demon could get up. Wesley, instead of aiming for Kennedy, aimed for the demon. It flipped though the air several times before plunging through the demons skull with an almighty crunch. "Or...not," she said as she watched it collide with the demon.

"You heard the alarm?" Wesley asked after Kennedy received the axe and joined them across the way.

"You kidding, that thing scared the life out of me. When I got out of the training room I heard screams a few floors down and found tall dark and red over there beating on a few lawyers. I lured him back up here and that's when you showed." Kennedy turned to Willow and stroked a strand of her out of her face. "Baby are you okay?" she asked. Kennedys' touch soothed Willow and made her knees tremble.

"I'm fine," Willow said as Kennedy pulled her arm away. She noticed it was covered in blood.

"She'll be fine after a goodnight's sleep...ironically. I'll explain later but right now we need weapons. Buffy, Angel and Spike are-..."

"Whoa, did you just say Spike!" Kennedy asked shocked. While Xander and Willow stood filling Kennedy in on everything, Wesley and Fred took the fire axe and ventured into the weapons cloister. When they came back Kennedy was stuck for words.  
Fred had a small dagger in her jeans pocket and a sword in her right hand.  
Wesley went for a large battle axe and he brought Xander the same.  
Willow was given a sword a bit smaller than Fred's' and she looked at it the same way she would if it was a really hard math problem that she couldn't figure out.  
Kennedy was happy keeping the fire axe. Wesley also had a large black bag hanging over his shoulder that contained various weaponry for the others. They all set off for the second floor elevator that led to Angels' office. When it was just the four of them without weapons it was still a tight squeeze and now with all the weapons and an extra body there was no chance. Wesley and Kennedy offered to go down through the lobby. He gave Fred the weapon bag and Xander wished them luck. Xander, Willow and Fred got ready to face the demon horde and as the bell of the elevator dinged, they couldn't have been more terrified with what they saw.  
"SHUT THE DOORS!" Buffy exclaimed to her friends as the elevator doors opened. It was too late though; three of the twenty-one Kunari's grabbed the small group and hauled them out of the elevator and onto their knees. Their weapons were ripped away from their hands and thrown into a pile on Angels' desk. Xander got the chance to glimpse the room before being thrown onto the floor.  
Buffy was being pinned down onto her knees with an axe to her throat. She was bleeding from her mouth and had large gashes on her arms and legs.  
Angel was being restrained in his chair. His shirt had been torn off in the battle and he was covered in wounds and bruises.  
Spike seemed to have gotten it the worst though, he was unconscious and Xander could have sworn he had shards of the glass from the door stabbing in his leg and neck.

"Took ya long enough," said a woman casually as a demon took Fred's' dagger and held it to her neck.

_Damn it, what was her name? Uh Ellie? No. Emily? Nope that's not it either. Eve? That's it! _Xander thought with his chin on Angels' cream carpet.

"Well y'know I like to make an entrance for my _escort_," Xander replied to Eve. The demon restraining Xander clapped him across the back of his head. As Eve slowly walked towards him he spotted Nicholas was standing behind her, he wasn't restrained or even beaten up. "Nick, man...help us out here!" Xander exclaimed. Nicholas looked upset but he was always hard to read because of his ridiculous habit of wearing sunglasses around the clock.

"I'm sorry...I have no authority here. I work for the senor partners so I must obey. There's nothing I can do," he said dropping his head. Eve walked over to Buffy and kneeled down.

"You were warned not to come here," she began. Buffy tried to wriggle out of the three demons' clutches but couldn't budge. They had only lasted about five minutes fighting the Kunari's before they managed to pin them down. Then Eve and Nicholas walked in and made them an offer they couldn't refuse. Buffys' and her friends' life. "Except Angel of course," she'd told them earlier. Eve continued, "What? You didn't think the Partners would miss out on the opportunity to take out the almighty _Buffy Summers_ did you? It's good for business cutie."

"I'm going to enjoy kicking that that sagging ass of yours," she replied before suffering a back-hand and blow to the face. Before anybody knew it, a red and bloodied fire emergency axe was thrown through the gap in the wall where the door should have been and collided with the head of one of the demons who was restraining Buffy. The other demons holding Buffy down were distracted and she seized the opportunity to wriggle free. She managed to roll onto her back and kick the two demons in the opposite direction. Kennedy and Wesley ran into the small and now crowded office. The other demons let go of their charges to battle Buffy.  
Angel freed himself from his chair and snapped the neck of a demon about to head for Xander. Xander was busy supplying everybody with a weapon.  
Willow cowered in the corner near the elevator doors.  
Kennedy was helping Buffy take on three of the demons. Fred was pulling the glass out of spikes leg and helping him up, Wesley and Angel were completely overwhelmed. Wesley plunged his blade into the stomach of a demon about to grasp Fred by the throat and as he pulled it back it collided with the legs of a demon behind him and knocked it to the floor. Fred seized her small dagger and heavily rammed it into the demons forehead.  
Xander had been sent toppling into Angels' desk but everybody else was too pre-occupied to notice. The demon caught Xanders sword as he was about to swing it and kicked him to the chest knocking Xander over again. The demon picked up Xanders' fallen sword and was about to divulge it into Xander chest.

"_NO!" _Willow exclaimed. She had watched the whole thing. She felt a sudden surge of energy course through her and the demon was sent off his feet towards the window. It screamed as it collided with the glass and dropped to the L.A pavement below. Willow looked down at her hands in shock and Xander gave her a reassuring smile as he got back into the fray.  
The afternoon sunlight was exposed directly now into Angels' office and spread out in a rectangular shape on the bloodied carpet. Angel and Spike were both taking on the main demon while Buffy and Kennedy took on the last two. Wesley, Fred and Xander had backed away to let _'the supers' _take care of the last three demons. Xander was hurt the worst. The demon caught Spikes' and Angels' fist as they both attempted to punch the demon. It growled and launched the pair

across the room. They landed onto the body of a dead Kunari and bounced over it into the exposed sunlight.  
Angel felt that familiar white hot sting on the exposed skin of his bare chest as he was basked in the sunlight. He covered his eyes and shot out of the patch as fast as he could. He had already begun smoking.

"Oh, bloody hell!" Spike cried as he collided with the patch of sunlit carpet. He was about to bound out of the exposure when he remembered that he should be burning up right now. He stayed there a moment longer, just waiting. Angel spotted this as he watched Kennedy axe a demon at the end of the room.

_Spike is one of them _he thought as Spike toyed with his hands curiously in the sunlight waiting for flames to explode there. But there were no flames, no sting, and no hot smoky death awaiting him. He had no clue what was happening.

Spike began, "what the-..."


	6. Episode 6: The Long Way Home

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse, I am just a fan!)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, episode 5  
The Long Way Home

[-] Chapter 1

Wesley finished off the last Kunari with a crossbow from his long strapped black bag. It hit the floor with a thud right next to Fred's' feet but she didn't even notice. Nobody noticed. Its doubtful Wesley even knew he'd done it. Everybody had cast their full attention onto the newest vampire with a soul. His peroxide blonde hair shined in the afternoon glow of Los Angeles. Angel stood shirtless with his skin smoking glaring at Spike. He was overwhelmed with jealousy and anger. Since they had been informed of Hecate and Osiris resetting the balance in this reality he was waiting for an opportunity to see if, by chance, he was one of the new super vampires. But when he felt that familiar white hot sting his hopes were crashed as though they were a building due for demolition, taking his Buffy into the world of day, sitting with her on a park bench when she was old, caring for her at anytime when she got sick and maybe even start back up their relationship. But it was impossible now, probably still impossible even if he _was _one of the new vampires. He had responsibilities to his friends and to Wolfram & Hart.  
And the thing he loathed most in the world was given all the opportunities that he wasn't. Spike could be the one to take her to work in the morning, pick her up at sunset and possibly even make love to her. Angel turned away from the scene and grabbed his black trench coat that hung on a hook behind his desk. He swung it around himself and leaned casually on the only sturdy wall in his office. He refused to meet the gaze of anyone who offered it. Buffy had watched Angel as he did this and she knew exactly what he was feeling. She too had hoped for the same things he had. She turned her attention back to Spike who was jumping childishly in and out of the direct sunlight. He laughed with extreme happiness. "This is bloody brilliant, it must be my soul or a reward or something for y'know saving the world and all that jazz..." he said as he continued to sway in and out of the sunlight patch. Buffy ran over to the nearest curtain and pulled it across, casting Angels' office into its usual gloom.

"Okay, that's enough of the Hoky Poky there sun tan Barbie," she said whilst connecting one curtain the other.

"What's happening to me doc?" Spike asked Fred.

Wesley began, "Spike there's something you should know-..." Angel let out a heavy breath that he wasn't aware he was holding and interrupted Wesley by saying,

"I'm gonna go and get cleaned up and y'know, find a shirt." Only Buffy seemed to notice what he said. She watched as he called the elevator to take him to his apartment on the second floor. She listened inattentively as Wesley explained everything to Spike about these new super vampires. He concluded by saying,

"And that's when Hecate and Osiris reset the balance that Willow...upset, if you will."

Spike began to reply, "well whatever happened its bloody brilliant..." Spike said more after that. There were a lot of _'bloody'_sand _'shagging'_s but Buffy didn't take any notice. She backed out of the crowd and headed after Angel towards the elevator. She heard the ding and it only caught the attention of Xander. He looked at her and nodded in agreement. She weakly smiled and turned into the elevator. She emerged into Angels' living room. She expected bigger but it was still a nice place. It had the same decor as his office except there were still cardboard boxes that hadn't been unpacked yet in various areas of the room. She looked around for him but had no luck. She opened the double doors to his bedroom and spotted the big king size bed with dark silk sheets. The curtains were drawn so the only source of light was coming from inside what seemed to be the bathroom. She heard the sound of a shower coming from there to. She sat herself on the end of his bed and decided to wait for him. She didn't even know what she was going to say to him. She just knew that she had to console him or something. Even though they hadn't got off to the best of terms since she got there, old habits die hard. She snapped out of her thoughts when she heard the sounds of tiles cracking and angry grunts coming from the bathroom. Without thinking she shot up from the bed and ran to it. It looked bigger than the living room. A huge silver tub was placed in the corner with a toilet and sink to match next to it. A white curtain was drawn across one of the walls but she could just make out Angels' muscular silhouette through it. His hands were cradling his head and his shoulders seemed to shake. Buffy timidly pulled back the curtain. Angels' knuckled were covered in blood and the tiles on the wall he was facing were shattered. One shard had cut his foot. He released his hands from his head and shot Buffy a glance. She weakly smiled. He looked so defeated and exhausted...helpless. He sat himself down in the shower, pulled his legs up to his chest and let his head fall onto his knees.  
Buffy kicked off her boots and stepped into the shower. The warm water flowing towards the drain soaked inside her socks as she sat down next to her beloved vampire and pulled her knees up to her chest like he did. She grabbed one of his hands and he lifted up his head.

"What're you doing? You're dripping wet," he said. She spotted the small swell of tears along the rim of his bottom eyelashes.

"Shhhh," she replied. She pulled his head down to her shoulder and he abided. Buffy couldn't think of somewhere she would rather be than there, with her Angel. The warm water from the shower head fell onto Buffys' white _I HEART NY _t-shirt.  
He felt the warmth of her breath as she exhaled onto his neck. She sat there with him, dripping wet wearing everything but shoes, just cradling him. The world around them seemed to melt away, her worries over the new slayers, the new super vamps, Willow and now Spike seemed to go with the world. She could have stayed there until her skin turned to stone.

Meanwhile downstairs in Angels' office, Fred had taken Spike back down to the lab to study his new found resistance to sunlight. Wesley had taken Kennedy to get herself cleaned up and Xander stayed with Willow in Angels' office among twenty-one rotting demon corpses. "So Buffy and the guy who owns this place had a thing?" Willow asked him.

"Angel, Will, and it was a lot more complicated and intense than that but I guess so," he replied bluntly.

"Will she be up there long?" Willow asked innocently. Xander exhaled heavily.

"When it comes to Angel Will, I wouldn't be surprised if she was up there until tomorrow."

Angels' shower had begun to lose its supply of hot water. But a cold shower seemed like the most necessary thing in the world right then. Angel took his head from Buffys' shoulder and gazed into her oak leaf green eyes. She looked back, her blonde her wet and sticking to her face and neck. The water had washed the blood from Angels' hands and down the drain. He kissed her solemnly on the cheek and she felt a slight shiver run through her as he did. He got to his feet and turned off the shower. She had never really paid much attention to his nakedness until then. She longed for him to sit back down next to her and just take her head in his hands and brush his cold lips against hers. Instead he shakily stepped out of the shower and offered her a hand to get up. She took it and got to her feet. Two towels were on the rack next to the sink and he offered her one. She took it from him. She watched as he wrapped his securely around his waist and silently went to leave the room to let her change out of her wet clothes.

_ Ever the gentlemen _she thought. "You don't have to go, I mean it's not like you haven't seen _me_ before and I just spent a good half hour with you in your...de-clothed...state," she said hesitantly. He never turned to look at her. Instead he said to the door frame,

"It's not that, it's just...too much temptation." He pulled the door swiftly from its frame and exited the room. She agreed with him, it was hard to stay away from him when they were apart and harder when they were together. She took off her discount clothes from _Golden Pines _and wrapped the fuzzy white towel around her underarms. It fell to about the length of the top of her knees. When she stepped onto the dark carpet of Angels' bedroom she found him sitting, fully clothed, on the edge of his bed. His dark locks of hair were still dripping wet which showed he didn't even take the time to properly dry himself. She sat down next to him and contemplated the carpet as he was doing also. They sat there for a good minute before Buffy broke the silence.

"So what happens now?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know," he replied lifting his head from the floor and looking at her. "What do you want to happen now?" she looked up and met his gaze. Her expression told him her answer but he never returned it. They both dropped their eyes back to the carpet in unison.

Buffy began, "I guess now that Willows' going to be fine I go back to Cleveland-..."

"With Spike?" Angel asked interrupting her. Buffy stood up from Angels' bed and looked at him.

"Can we **not** do this again?" she asked exhausted.

"Not do what?" he growled in retaliation.

"You know what," she replied. It was like she was dreaming again, being in Angels' room, wearing next to nothing reminded her of the time she spent at the Hyperion and the dream she had about it whilst driving to Wolfram & Hart.  
She stood dazed as she began to flash back.

She picked up exactly where she left off in her dream on the way to Wolfram & Hart except she was fully conscious now. They had just finished their argument and Buffy had agreed to spend the night in her dead lovers' arms after she arrived at the Hyperion after the leaving what was left of Sunnydale. "Buffy?" he asked in an almost in-audible whisper.

"Um-hm?" she replied. Her eyes were closed and she felt herself drifting to sleep.

"Do you um... think you might be cookies?"

"Huh?" she said confused.

"Remember...the cemetery in Sunnydale...the cookie analogy?" he reminded her cautiously. He regretted asking her the second after he'd asked. He knew that that question could only lead to an argument or them making love. He knew which one he preferred but he couldn't, not with Buffy, not then not ever. Her eyes widened as she realised what Angel was asking her. She lifted her head from Angels' pillow and turned to read his expression. Deep down she hoped he was joking, she knew this conversation was not going to go well.

"Oh," she replied. He furrowed his eyebrows to non-verbally tell her that he was expecting an answer. "Well now who's mister twenty questions tonight," she asked awkwardly.

"If you'd rather...not...then we could...not," he said hiding his expression. She sat up and wrapped the bed covers around her waist. He rested his head on his hand which leaned on his pillow and he seemed to take a mental image of her face. _Beautiful _he thought.

"Angel, I love you," she started. She spotted that modest grin that she loved so much spread across his face.

"I love you too," he replied.

"And no matter how old I get, or how much time passes, nothing will ever change that. You know that right?"

"I know, I know because I feel it too." She smiled her own familiar grin that Angel loved after he said that.

"But as far as me being done baking...I haven't heard the oven timer ding yet," she stated painfully. It killed her to say this, he was offering her his mind, body and soul but something told her that it wasn't time.

"But Buffy...you're not the one and only chosen anymore, Sunnydale's' gone, this could be your chance to attempt that normal life you've always wanted." He was pleading for her selfishly now. He had spent four years restraining himself from asking this of Buffy, and it felt good to let it out.

"Is it? Angel there are girls in this hotel, girls in this city, state, country and all around the world who have just suddenly woke up with this huge power. They don't know what's happening to them. It's my job to fix that. How can I possibly find a normal life doing what I do?" she asked rhetorically.

"I could go with you, help you-..."

"No you couldn't, you have your responsibilities just like I have," she raised her hand to his cheek and looked around at the cardboard boxes labelled _Keep_, _Discard_, _Wolfram & Hart_ and more. He spotted this and understood what she was saying. "It would be selfish of us to rush back into things, as much as I want to; it's just not our time-..."

"It's not our time _**yet**_," he said correcting and interrupting her. "I'll have you Buffy, even if it kills me-..."

"Even if it kills _**us**_," she corrected him with a soft kiss to his forehead. The new touch between them made the tension grow. She dropped her gaze from his forehead into his penetrating eyes. They uncontrollably grew closer and closer until Angel could feel her sweet warm breath flush against his hard cold skin. Their noses brushed together and Buffy felt shivers originate from the balls of her feet up to her knees and head. "If...w-we...allow something to...happen h-here," she stuttered in a wholesome whisper.

"Things...could go h-horribly...wrong," he stuttered too in reply. Neither of them could fight it anymore, the tension grew and grew until they were crushed under it. They fell into each other. His hand caressed the fine hairs on the back of her neck as he pulled her into a passionate kiss. She placed both hands on the back of his neck so that he wouldn't let go.

_Never let go of me _she pleaded to him in her mind. One soft kiss led to another and another until he felt her tongue part his lips and gain access into his cool mouth. They both fell uncontrollably back onto the bed in a trance of passion and lust. She'd wanted this for so long, hungered for it and it was there for the taking. She was losing control but she couldn't care.  
She felt it then as his hand traced up her back to her bra leaving Goosebumps in its tracks. She felt the guilt of allowing him to lose his soul, the shame of being so easily seduced and the regret of knowing she had to let go of him. She took her hand from behind his neck and returned them to his chest. She pushed as hard as she could and he was almost sent sprawling off of the bed. She shot up from the bed and over to the door. "I'm sorry," she said with tears in her eyes.

Angel began, "Buffy, I-..."

"I can't," she fumbled around the doorframe until she found the doorknob and turned it to the right causing it to swing open. He watched as his Cinderella left the ball without leaving as much as a glass slipper in her place.  
After that night during her stay at the Hyperion Buffy and Angel never spoke of that night or told anybody that it happened. Not even Willow. Their first real conversation since happened when Wesley offered Buffy the manor in Cleveland and the awkwardness was still there. She didn't want to take the chance that she might lose control like that again. She loved him enough to let him go.

Buffy felt herself fall heavily back into reality and she took her stare off of a dying plant in the corner of Angels' room. "No I guess I don't," Angel replied to her previous statement.

"What?" she asked dazed. She had lost track of their conversation. She continued, "Oh right. Angel about Spike...if he wants to come back with me I'm not going to stop him, I could use him when training the girls. And now with the new vampires he would be a big help, but it's his choice. I hope you'll understand that."

"Buffy, I do really, but Spike?" he winced when he said Spikes' name.

"Do you know any other vampires with a soul that are one of these new uber-vamps too? Because if you could just point me in the direction you'd be a real big help!" she said loudly. She saw Angels' casual expression turn to despair. He took his gaze from her and dropped it to the floor. She gripped the root of her nose between her eyes with her index finger and thumb in frustration. She knew that Angel was hurting over the fact that the thing he loathed most in the world could now watch the sunset and live in a world he was no longer welcome to. "Angel, I'm sorry, I didn't-..." Before she could finish Angel had already gotten to his feet and started towards the door.

"I think um...Fred may have some stuff that'll fit you. I'll uh be right back," he said as he slammed the door shut behind him leaving a grief ridden Buffy damp in his room, alone. She sat herself back down onto the bed and dropped her head into her lap. She had no control over the coming tears that dominated her usual rosy cheeks which had turned a grim pale colour in light of her princes' departure.

[-] Chapter 2

Buffy lifted her head from her hands and stroked back the stray golden hairs that shadowed over her eyes. She was almost completely dry now but her towel kept her cold. Cold. That's what she felt emotionally and physically. She didn't mean to hurt Angel but it was like her words vomited out from her mouth. She sat upright staring at the doors in silence but they didn't open. She decided to wonder about his room. She picked up his pillow and held it to her face; Angels' scent teased her as she cuddled it like a loved one. It was so dark so she turned on a lamp on his bedside table. It lit up three unpacked cardboard boxes, the one on top labelled _Keep_. She opened the flaps on the top and found that the box was full of old and thick novels. The one on top seemed to be the oldest. She picked it up and read the cover. _Wuthering Heights _by _Emily __Brontë_. She flipped through the creased and yellowing pages. She got about two thirds through when a small white piece of paper fell from one of the pages. It floated on the air of the room before silently dropping to the carpet like a dove's feather. She looked down at it in confusion. She folded over the book and carefully placed it back in its box hoping Angel wouldn't notice that she had been snooping. He didn't need more ammunition if another argument broke out.  
She bent over and picked up the paper. But it wasn't paper; there was a hard material on the back of it. She flipped it over in her hands as she stood back up. It was a photograph, a creased and cold photograph of her, Buffy. She recognised it as the one she used when she ran for homecoming queen in senor year. She held it in-between her fingers and smiled. It was one thing for Angel to say he loved her, but she was positive now that he did love her. _Angel _she thought.  
She heard the now annoying ding of the elevator coming from Angels' living room. She didn't care, care about anything actually. He opened the doors to his bedroom holding a plain white button-up shirt and jeans.

"Fred said that she's sorry if they're a little creased but-..." Angel stopped speaking as he spotted Buffy standing at the foot of his bed holding the photograph he stared at for hours almost every night. "Okay," he began, "I know you're thinking...this is a little weird with me y'know keeping a photograph of you-..." he was stopped again when he spotted Buffys' expression. She was smiling a beautifully extreme smile and had tears in her eyes. She ran at him, almost at full force and collided with his body. She kissed him firmly and passionately and held the back of his neck so he wouldn't and couldn't pull away. He didn't even try too. It had been so long since he'd felt Buffys' warm lips against his; he was weak in the knees and so was she. She slowly moved down from his lips to his neck, kissing and caressing every bare spot of skin she could. He couldn't remember a time when he'd been so happy. He dropped Fred's' clothes and picked up Buffy, careful not to untangle the small knot she had tied her towel with.  
After a few minutes they stood there just holding each other, content with the world and what was happening in it. Angel spoke first.

"Not that that wasn't one of the happiest moments of my life but-..."

"We can make it work," Buffy said into his chest interrupting him.

"Make it work?" he asked in confusion.

"I could drive to L.A on weekends or y'know you could come to Cleveland and we'll talk on the phone all the time and-..."

"Buffy, what are you saying? You wanna...get back together?" he asked in hopeful sadness.

"More than anything," was her reply. Buffy started making her way up his chest to his mouth with small and soft kisses. It killed Angel to know that he had to pull away. "Is something wrong?" she asked exhausted as Angel pulled away and turned from her.

Angel began to stutter, "No, nothings... n-nothings wrong, it's not wrong but-..."

"Okay it's not wrong, I get it. Angel what is it? Me?" she asked with a croaky voice. He turned to her, wearing the same saddened expression as she was.

"No, of course not. I couldn't want anything more than what you've just described but... it's not wrong...but it's not right." Angel words seemed to slap Buffy much harder than any vampire or demon ever had. She was stunned, she was throwing herself at him and he was denying her. Knots and needles seemed to emerge in Buffys' torso.

"W-what?" she seemed so defeated to him. Angel wished that he didn't have to do this, but he knew it still wasn't their time, not yet.

"Buffy, back at the hotel we promised each other that we would have each other someday even if it kills us? I just don't t-think that...someday...is today," he said fighting the sting of flowing tears behind his eyes and curling his hands into fists.

"You're saying you don't want to be with me?" she asked in the same defeated tone.

"More than anything-..."

"Then what's the p-problem? A-Angel I love you."

"I love you too, more than anything in this world, but its n-not our t-time, we have responsibilities, l-lives. If we just rush back into things it would be selfish Buffy," he couldn't look at her, not directly. One slight glance into her enticing eyes that stung him as she stared would make him melt into her.

"But i-i-I need you," she pleaded.

"Buffy you were right," he concluded.

"What?" she asked confused through the waterfall of tears streaming down her cheeks onto her damp towel.

"Back at the Hotel, when the roles were reversed...you were right. You said it wasn't our time. I just, I don't know, I just don't think your oven timer has rung yet." Even though Angel used the cookie analogy his words still stung her as though they were the actual English phrases. She didn't know what to say, she'd pleaded and threw herself at him but on some level she understood what he was trying to make her believe, but she wasn't convinced even he believed it.

"You can't go all cookies on me Angel," she said firmly.

"Buffy what you're asking me is very...complex," he said descriptively. He thought about each word he was going to say before he said it. He couldn't risk saying the wrong thing and watch Buffy storm out of his room...not again.

"Actually I think it' kinda simple, Angel I'm throwing myself at you! Who cares about our responsibilities? I died for this world. **Twice**." Buffy began to get angry, Angel could see her clenching her fists and teeth as she spoke and it was like she was spitting her words at him. "You'd think the universe, out of gratitude, would give me this one little thing." She unclenched her hands and teeth and looked at him, full with despair. "Please...I don't think I can do this without you."

"Do what Buffy? Live?" Angel asked. He knew of Buffys' stubbornness and if she wanted something badly then she usually did everything she could to get it. To get him.

"Live...live in Ohio...train the girls...look after Dawn...pretend like everything's okay I mean you're the only one I can be honest with," she persuaded with many hand gestures.

"Buffy, you've been looking out for Dawn your entire life. You have friends that will help you with the girls and as for Ohio...you'll adjust. In my two-hundred and forty-eight years I've never met anybody stronger then you." Buffy could see and recognise Angels' own stubbornness. She was getting nowhere. She wanted to be with him more than anything else in the world at that moment. She made her last chance to grab hold of what could be the start of her normal life.

"A-Angel... I-..."

"N-no." That simple world almost made him break the wooden legs of his bed and ram it right through his chest; he saw the slight confusion and utter disappointment on her face. But he knew what was right for Buffy, even if she wouldn't admit that she knew it too. It wasn't their time, not now. Possibly not ever but he wouldn't let himself think like that. It was what he dreamed of every night, his first thought as he'd wake up in the morning. "My answer...is no."

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Downstairs in Angels' office, Willow and Xander were still sitting near Angels' almost broken desk but Kennedy had joined them now. Wesley was helping security clear out the demon corpses from the office and the lawyers, clients, Gunn and Lorne had all returned to the building and didn't seem to even acknowledge the evidence of carnage that had took place in their absence. It seemed that while the gang were taking on the Kunari's, Eve had done a runner but Nicholas had stayed behind and huddled near the coat rack at the back of the office. The carpet was ripped and blotchy and the walls were completely unstable. Every wall lamp had had the glass either smashed or ripped off and the only evidence of their being curtains in the office were the spread out chunks of dark fabric.  
Willow and Xander had been waiting for Buffy for over an hour now. They were all exhausted and just longed to be back at 1630 Revelow Drive, Sunnydale, CA. But they would just have to settle for the manor. The manor was a lot more spacious and grand than Buffys', now demolished, house. But that house had so many memories. Before Willow lost her memory and before the incident with the dream catcher in the graveyard, Willow sometimes sat awake at night and remembered simpler times. Like when her and Xander would hang out in Buffys' room watching foreign black and white movies while Joyce Summers would bring them the occasional snack. Things were easier for them then.  
Kennedy and Gunn made small talk in the corner while Lorne and Wesley spoke in whispers on the opposite side of the room.

"Will, how're yea doin?" Xander asked in a huddled whisper.

"Um, okay I guess. Buffy says my memory will be back once I fall asleep so I just wanna get back to...where ever it is that you guys keep my bed. I do have a bed right?" Willow replied with concern on her last sentence. Xander laughed.

"Yeah, it comes complete with a comfy mattress and sheets." The elevator behind the desk that Willow and Xander were perched on top of made its, now irritating, ding and a blonde woman wearing a plain white shirt and dark blue suede jeans and boots stepped onto the creamy carpet. Xander got up from the desk and greeted Buffy with a light and simple smile. Willow did the same.

"You okay?" Buffy asked Willow.

"The next person that asks me that is gonna get a taste of my witchy powers and...whatnot," Willow said with a smile. "I'm fine."

"Okay," Buffy laughed. Wesley caught her attention from across the room.

"Angel?" he asked. Buffy turned to him. She wouldn't meet his gaze for fear that Wesley might catch on to something she didn't want him to.

"He'll uh... be down in a m-minute," she stated plainly. The awkward tension in the room rose as the small group stood and sat in silence. Kennedy left Gunn's' side and joined Buffy next to Willows'.

"**So...** Willow tree gets her ol' noggin fixed after a good night's sleep I'm told. That's good right?" Lorne started. Xander looked up from the carpet because he figured nobody else would. He gave Lorne a reluctant smile. Xander and Lorne hadn't really built a relationship like Lorne, Buffy and Willow had. Most of that was his fault he thought. The weeks he'd spent at the Hyperion were shady, mostly because of the glass cylinder of whiskey that he permanently held in his hand during his stay.  
The sound of Fred's' small heel and Spike's' loud British accent outside the office broke the silence. They entered the office and continued their conversation.

"Spike, I'd still like to study you're new molecular structure that makes you newly immune to sunlight. I wouldn't advise that you go frolicking around L.A beach because it's possible this new immunity could be temporary," Fred said.

"And what? Have you and team of science geeks tie me up and take a peek at my insides. I don't think so. But if _you _wanted to tie me up I wouldn't say no," Spike smirked in reply.

"Spike!" Wesley said loudly. Spike rolled his eyes and scoffed. He backed up against a sturdy wall and surveyed the room. Buffy hadn't acknowledged his presence. Once again the elevator doors slid open with a high pitched ding. Angel emerged from the elevator and gave Wesley and Gunn a nod. Buffy didn't want to wait around for people to casually ease up to the question, _"so are you going or staying?"_ so she spoke up just before Angel could start a sentence.

"Well I uh, I think we should get going. Giles will be worried and y'know Faith's probably got herself into some sort of trouble by now," she said. Xander and Willow got up from the desk. Willow felt awkward giving everybody a hug goodbye because as far as she knew they were strangers so she silently slipped out of the office while Xander shook hands with Gunn and Angel and waited in the lobby for her friends.

"See ya soon," Xander said to Gunn as he released his hand. Buffy gave Lorne, Gunn Wesley and Fred a hug and turned to Angel. It was probably the most awkward and embarrassing moment of her life. She didn't know whether to go in for a hug, handshake or just smile. He seemed just as uncomfortable as she was. She wanted to hug him, my god she wanted to _**kiss**_ him but she couldn't. Not now.

"So we'll talk soon?" she mumbled to him.

"Yeah we'll uh...keep in touch. Drive safe," he replied in a low hush.

"I will," she sounded. Everybody dispersed from the room. Wesley took the blood stained werewolf case file from Angels' almost destroyed desk and stood by the door. Gunn and Lorne headed to the left of the hallway while Fred headed towards the door to the lab.

"So, what's your plan?" Xander asked Spike near the wall to the left of Buffy. Spike tore his back from the wall and crossed his arms as though he was thoughtful. Buffy cut in before he could reply.

"You're welcome to come back with us Spike," she said lowly and half-heartedly. Deep down she wanted Spike to return to Ohio with her but she wouldn't admit it. Ever. "I mean there's plenty of room, and I'm sure Giles would have a field day when he see's you."

"Angel," Wesley called from the door. "A word?" Angel was glad for the excuse to leave. Of course he never _ever _wanted to leave Buffys' side but he didn't want to be there for the moment when the thing he loathed most in the world went home with the person he loved more than life itself.

"Sure," he replied. He gave Buffy a departing glance and placed a hand on her shoulder. She nodded and he left the room with Wesley.

"I'll go find Willow," Xander announced. "We'll meet you by the car." He left the room leaving only Buffy, Spike and the awkwardness alone in the room.

"Buffy," he began. "When I got back, Angel told me you were in Rome and for a long time all I could think about was getting out of this place and coming to find _you_. But whether it was some spell that Nancy boys' cronies cast, as much as I tried I just ended up back here.  
In Wolfram & Hart.  
If living with you in Sunnydale taught me anything it's that everything happens for a reason and fate has a way of getting what it wants and all that philosophical junk," he smiled and continued, "trust me there's nothing more I'd want than to go and be by your side Slayer, but...I think...for now...my place is here.  
Protector of the innocent and all that.  
You may not want to know me, but you do and you know me well enough to know that sitting around teaching a bunch of girls the pointy end of the stake isn't me. I need to be here, on the front lines battling the forces of evil with my new superhero powers." Buffy laughed at the end of his speech.

"Practice that in the mirror a few times huh?" she smirked.

"Well y'know, I wanted to get it right," he laughed. "By the way, do I have a reflection now?" he asked with a growing smile at the thought that he would be able to see his appearance in spoons and water.

"Maybe," she started. She began heading for the door of the office. Before she exited she stopped and turned to Spike. "Let me know how it goes," she mumbled teasingly.

"Will do love," he replied. But he doubted she heard him. She was already out the office and into the lobby. He peeked around the edge of the door frame and caught a glimpse of Buffy's angelically beautiful hair fall down to her shoulders. _This could get interesting _Spike thought as he too left the office and began his new destiny at Wolfram & Hart.

[-] Chapter 3

As Buffy left Wolfram & Hart through its huge oak doors the world seemed to come rushing back to her. Since she'd been at Wolfram & Hart everything outsides its walls seemed insignificant and meaningless. It was like the building and the people in it were the population of some secluded planet.  
Evil planet...but a planet that her Angel lived on.  
Part of her wanted to turn back, to feel the same sense of not worrying but like Angel said, she had many responsibilities. She admitted to herself that having Spike around would have eased the load a bit, if nothing else he was the person she went to for advice a lot of the time back in Sunnydale and the one who held her while she slept in a stranger's house a few months ago. The task ahead of her, training the hundreds of girls, maybe thousands from around the world, but in order to train them she had to find them. And then there was the issue of the new vampires. If what Hecate and Osiris said was true, then the new vampires usually spawned in the area were a Slayer lived, so she assumed Cleveland must be in chaos and Giles must have no idea what's happening. She would have to explain it to him, she knew that telling him that Spike was alive wouldn't be a summer picnic...but he needed to know.  
Even if he didn't want to know.  
Buffy felt the fresh outside air embrace the fibres of her –Fred's'- clothes and it seemed to take her mind of her thoughts. Wolfram & Hart parking lot seemed a lot bigger to her the second time she saw it. The cars were all virtually the same, sleek, black, tinted windows. It was probably Nicholas's' vision of heaven on earth. She couldn't recall seeing Nicholas after she got up from being almost pummelled to death by a Kunari; she assumed he'd run away with Eve. She was angry with him of course, but she knew that he'd made it very clear the moment they met about a month ago. _My job is to look after the Manor, not you_ he'd said. She could see though, the pain in his expression as he watched Buffy and Xander and Willow getting crushed under the Kunari's. He was a reasonably powerful warlock, or so she assumed when he made their contract appear from thin air back in Golden Pines, but he was helpless. Buffy knew a thing or two about having power but being rendered useless.  
One car stood out against the crowed though. Giles's' cherry red car stood in the crowd of black metal. At that moment she thanked God for the fact that Giles had abandoned his car in the desert when he took the potentials on the vision quest or it would have been swallowed by the crater. She found her way through what seemed like a wonderland of parked cars until Giles' cherry red car came properly into view.  
Willow was sitting in the passenger seat with her eyes closed and her head on the closed window. They had all been awake for hours but Buffy knew Willow had gone through a lot more than them.  
Kennedy and Xander when leaning heavily on the side of the car, Xander was shouting something at the car and from Buffys' view it looked like Kennedy was punching the hood of it. Buffy quickened her pace and found that Kennedy and Xander where pummelling Nicholas against the car. His tie was lose, mouth bleeding but miraculously his sunglasses had managed to remain on his face. Buffy grabbed Kennedy by the shoulders and tossed her at the black car behind her. She heaved Xander arm off of Nicholas' shoulder and placed both hands on his torso and sent him hurtling to the floor.

"What the hell is going on here?" Buffy demanded. It was around 2 o'clock in the afternoon and the heat was beginning to wear on her. Kennedy got to her feet first.

"Are you high? You saw what that British asshole did to us!" Kennedy exclaimed in anger.

"He was about to leave us to die Buff!" Xander chimed in as he straightened himself out.

Buffy began, "what _**he did**_ to us? It wasn't him that beat us to bloody pulps and crushed us against the floor-"

"He might as well have Buffy, he stood there and watched!" Kennedy interrupted.

"He had _no _choice!" Buffy spat.

Kennedy began, "but he-" she stopped abruptly when she caught Buffys' glance. Kennedy was the type of girl that hated being told what to do, how to do it and when to do it. Partially she blamed the fact that from early birth she was bathed in luxuries, she had the best toys, the best clothes even the best room in her house. She figured that the reason her mother spoiled her so much was because of her parents' divorce. Her parents divorced when she was twelve and that's when she began acting out. She stayed living with her mother in New York while her father moved to London with a plastic big breasted hooker. But when she was fifteen she was approached by a man claiming to be her watcher. He explained to her the truths of this world and she believed him without question. When she turned sixteen she told her mother she was going to be attending a boarding school in San Diego, which she did...but only partially. Mostly she spent her time training and studying.  
When she turned nineteen her watcher was killed by the bringers and she was brought to Sunnydale by one, Mr. Giles.  
Kennedy hated authority figures, she only did what she was told when the request came from the mouth of her watcher. Deep down she felt like he failed her, or she failed him. Since meeting Buffy she learned that Buffy was in charge, Buffy had the life, Buffy had the friends and if she wanted her life with Willow she would have to have a life with Buffy too. A lot of the time she protested when Buffy asked something of her, but slowly but surely she was learning to trust Buffy, and even sometimes Faith, like she did her watcher.

"Both of you just get in the car," Buffy spat. Kennedy angrily pulled the latch on the back door of Giles car and climbed in. She exhaled heavily and folded her arms across her chest. Xander bowed his hand towards the floor and began walking in the direction of Nicholas' car. "Actually, Xand, I think it would be best if you rode with Will and Kennedy," she advised. Xander turned and didn't argue. He gave a weak smile and hauled himself into the driver's seat of Giles' car. Nicholas was sitting on the floor beside Giles' car and was holding his head. Buffy knocked on the window that Willows' head was leaned on. Willow met Buffys' gaze and rolled the window down. "You saw that huh?"

"Yep," Willow began drowsily. "I get what you did though."

"Thanks, you okay?" Buffy asked.

"I'm fine, just a little woozy," she replied.

"Well in the interests of Xander going all homicidal on Nicholas I'm gonna ride with him, kay?"

"Sure, go, I'll be fine."

"You sure?" Buffy asked.

"Buffy I'm a big girl...I think. I guess I'll find out soon," Willow sounded.

"Get some rest." Willow tiredly nodded her head and rolled up the window. Buffy fell to her knees next to Nicholas. "You okay?" she asked.

"Had better days," he replied. "Don't suppose you'd give us a hand?" Buffy got to her feet and offered her hand to Nicholas. He took it and pulled on it strongly to get himself to his feet. Buffy allowed Nicholas to put his arm on her shoulder and together they walked a couple meters away in the direction of his car. She hauled him into the passenger seat and she climbed into the drivers. A car horn honked from across the lot and Buffy noticed the cherry red convertible heading for the direction of the L.A roads. Buffy watched as it went out of view and she exhaled heavily and took her hands from the wheel and to her lap. Her face dropped in the same direction.

"We'd better get a move on Buffy, Bob the Builder and Tabitha might get to far ahead," Nicholas croaked.

"J-just a sec," Buffy stuttered. She turned her face towards the sign to the rear of the car that read _WOLFRAM & HART: ATTORNYS AT LAW_. Buffy realised that she didn't want to leave. Going back to Cleveland seemed like asking her to go back to high school. The people –**person**- she loved most in the world were in that building and she didn't want to cut herself off from them –**him**-. She did feel the sudden urge to abandon Nicholas in his current state and run at full Slayer speed back through those evil doors were they –**he**- lived and worked.

Nicholas began, "Buffy-"

"I said I need a minute!" Buffy exclaimed. She caught Nicholas' surprised expression and brushed back her hair with her hands. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, it's good to see you take of that _nothing bothers me because I'm Buffy Summers _mask for a change," Nicholas taunted. Buffy smiled weakly and gave one last look at the big black sign with the white letters. "We could go back?"

"What?" she asked confused.

"Obviously you feel that there's something more you need to do in there. Here's your chance," he advised.

"But I-"

"Buffy I've been around a long time. I have my share of regrets. Letting you lot get battered by a horde of demons would be the newest bullet point on the list. Go, tell them you love them," he concluded.

"**Him**" she corrected him quickly.

"Whatever you need to believe kitten," he smiled. Nicholas watched as Buffy battled with all her instincts and urges to not pull the latch on his car and run towards the doors. Her aura was practically screaming to him. Minutes past and he noticed the river of tears rush from the corner of her eyes and along her angelically beautiful lashes. "Well?"

"I can't," she whispered.

"But you can Buffy!" he said happily and loudly. He wanted this for her, he tried to convince himself the only reason he wanted Buffy to go and see Angel and Spike, or just Angel as she tried to convince herself, was so that he wouldn't have to witness her moping around the manor for the next fortnight. But he was starting to realise that it might be because he didn't want to see her unhappy. He tried to shake his feelings off with a sharp shake of the head. A tear fell from Buffys' eyes onto Fred's sea blue jeans.  
A drop in the ocean.  
"Well?" he sounded.

"If I go in th-there i-i...y'know why am I even telling you these things? You don't even know me," she whispered angrily.

"Oh I think I know you well enough by now kitten. But you know yourself that you're not angry with me...only yourself," he replied. Buffy let out a breath that she wasn't aware she was holding and began whacking the back of her head against the head-rest of the driver's seat in frustration. She stopped abruptly and looked at Nicholas wide-eyed.

"I think I liked you better when you were letting me get pummelled," she joked. Her tone suddenly changed to one of complete despair. "If I g-go in t-there, I know I won't come out. Everything I've wanted since I-I was in High School is in that building a-and-"

"You're afraid you'll lose control and cost the big boss man his pesky soul," Nicholas finished her sentence for her a bit more Britishly than she would have.

"W-well yeah...I guess. And now with Spike I-" Buffy stopped as she turned to Nicholas and took in his appearance. She could see why a lot of the new Slayers had a crush on him. He was incredibly handsome...but Buffy wondered whether the senor partners made him so. "How do you do that?" she asked with no relativity to her previous and unfinished sentence.

"Do what?" he asked.

"Get me to talk to you...I mean really talk and make things feel slightly better," she smiled unknowingly.

"Could be my devilish charm or my frightening good looks. Of course under my recent bruises I'm probably mistaken-" he boasted jokingly.

"Y'know I think if you were made of chocolate you'd eat yourself," she replied in the same joking tone. After a moment of sitting in the silence of the car Nicholas spoke up.

"Maybe we bought our masks from the same store," he said taking of his sunglasses and staring at Buffy. She met his gaze and understood what he meant. The _nothing bothers me because I'm Buffy Summers _mask that she wore, as he kindly put it.  
His eyes were a beautiful shade of green, relatively equal to her own but possibly darker. He had the innocence of a child in them...they were beautiful and Buffy couldn't understand why he hid them.

"I uh...g-guess we should get going them," she stated after Nicholas put his sunglasses back on his nose and she wiped the moist puddles from under her eyes.

"If that's what you want," he replied. Buffy turned the key in the ignition and began to reverse from her current parking spot. She stopped and turned to him.

"Thank you," she said.

"Your welcome Buffy," he beamed. Buffy smiled and put the car in reverse. She silently rode down the streets of Los Angeles filled with thoughts of Angel...and occasionally Spike. Nicholas rummaged around in the glove compartment and found himself a few sutures for his cuts and bruises. He healed fast. By the time they reached the city limits the bruising around his mouth had become just a dark red shade. _The benefits of being supernatural_ Buffy guessed. She wondered what Nicholas was exactly.  
Well...except British, which was obvious.  
She knew he appeared to be a man, nobody she'd give a third look to on the street. But after meeting Glory she learned her lesson. Don't judge a book by its cover or the book might try to kill your sister and end the world. _Is he a demon? He knows magic so it could be a possibility. How old is he? He looks about twenty-five but then again...so did Glory._  
They caught up with Xander, Willow and Kennedy near the interstate. They questioned her on what took her so long but her reply was, "I had a few things to clear up." Buffy was disappointed when she saw Willow was still awake, she'd hoped that she may have fallen asleep in the car and by the time they reached _Golden Pines_ she may have her memory back. She was certainly drowsy but Buffy couldn't blame her. When the scoobies and Nicholas and Kennedy reached Golden Pines they spotted the familiar sign welcoming them into the small town. It was around 8 at night. They'd been at this spot in the car only hours before but it felt like a lifetime ago to Xander.  
Or maybe somebody else's life.  
They discreetly drove passed the church were Buffy, Kennedy and Xander had encountered the first uber-vamp. A single police cruiser was parked outside and the L.A morgue must have driven out to the small town on the city limits to recover the bodies. A few more people than the old woman and her dog were walking around the cramped streets but Nicholas could tell by their body language that they were all scared out of their whits. Xander suggested they park the cars in the High School's' parking lot so they wouldn't attract too much attention. They couldn't risk that somebody from the church might recognise them. They stood together on the sidewalk outside the High School; Buffy stood in-between Kennedy, Xander and Nicholas while Willow leant drowsily on the gate. The sun had gone down about ten minutes before their arrival. Nicholas announced as he looked at his expensive watch that it was 8:24 p.m.

"Okay...so we know a Slayer lives here. Any idea on were exactly?" Kennedy chimed. Everybody's gaze suddenly fell to Willow.

"Whoa whoa whoa-" she began but Buffy cut her off.

"Will-" Willow cut her off.

"No, I know you guys think I'm some big Mystic Meg but I think you've got it wrong. I mean the thing with church was weird y'know but I was a fluke...a strange fluke thing," she rambled.

Buffy began, "Willow I know this must be scary but a girl's life is on the line here and you're the only one who can find her-"

"No pressure or anything" Xander added.

"Just concentrate," Buffy continued. "You sensed something was wrong with the church...you can do this Will, I know you."

"Yeah well that makes one of us," Willow replied. Willow closed her eyes and stood alone for a moment. Willow felt something pass through her, it was neither hot nor cold or big or small but it was something. It made the tips of her fingers tingle and Buffy could have sworn the roots of her delicate auburn hair twinged to a shade of white. Willow opened her eyes and they were black, empty and terrifying.

_Magic side-effect Buffy, she's fine _Buffy thought. Willow's eyes became their usual brown colour. She exhaled heavily and began falling. Kennedy caught her by the shoulder.

"T-that way...I-I think," Willow whispered as pointed at the direction that lead to a row of houses. The group followed as Willow and Buffy lead the way. They twisted around street corners and through cramped alleyways. They eventually ended up on the front lawn of a white picket fenced house with a mail box labelled _Grover_. "Your girls' in there I think," Willow said. Buffy smiled at Willow and began to walk up to the front step were a porch light beamed.

"Whoa, whoa," Xander said as he followed Buffy up the front lawn. "Buffy what are you doin'?" he asked as he grabbed her arm.

"I'm gonna go talk to her..." Buffy said tentatively.

"Well yeah I got that part. But have you thought about what you're gonna say? _Hi, I'm Buffy...a Vampire Slayer and so is your daughter, whatever her name is, and by the way she's gotta go half way across the country with me to learn how to kill demons?" _he stated sarcastically. Buffy knew he was right. She hadn't given much thought on what she would say. She was more focused on getting there than actually what she would do when she got there.

"I'll think of something...I'll improvise," she said as she shrugged from his grasp.

"Buff, you don't know anything about this girl. Her age, her name I mean what if she's younger than Amalia?" he warned.

"I'll handle it!" Buffy whispered angrily.

"I'm going with you," he said as he followed her up the path. Buffy didn't have time to argue but before she could get her finger to press the button for the door bell an elderly African American woman with short black curly hair and red lipstick opened the door wearing white pyjamas and a silk night gown.

"What's all the commotion?" she asked at Buffy and Xander. Buffy suddenly froze up and didn't seem to have any control over her mouth. Xander watched and waited for her to reply but decided to step in and save the day.

"Evening ma'am. My name is Xander Harris and this is Buffy Sum-" Before he could finish the woman took on a shocked and frightened expression.

"It's you!" she announced. "The people from this morning's service...it's you. You saved us!" the woman sounded happy and excited more than anything. "You killed that thing," she said referring to Buffy. Xander nudged Buffy back into reality.

Buffy began "uh...I guess so yeah, it's kinda' my job-"

"The lord sent you to us this morning...you must be an Angel," the woman announced. The sound of his name caught Buffy by surprise. She'd built a barrier over the years against it but since she'd been at Wolfram & Hart the brick had been ripped apart.

After all, all brick was is sand and water.

"Sorta," Buffy replied. Before she could say anymore the woman had already ushered Buffy and Xander into her house. It was kind of a cliché, a typical old person's home with antique tea sets and grandfather clocks but it was cosy and reminded Buffy of simpler times when her and Dawn would stay with their Grandparents.

"Jim!" exclaimed the woman up the stairs. Xander and Buffy were lead into the living room.

"Mary?" exclaimed a man from up the stairs. "What's goin' on?" Mary and Jim sat on the sofa opposite Buffy and Xander and Jim just luridly gazed at Buffy. "What you people did this morning was a miracle sent by our lord and saviour," the man said. "Bless you."

"Thank you sir," Xander said. "Actually we were wondering if you have a daughter. Or grandchild maybe that lives with you?"

"Alicia!" Mr. Grover exclaimed. Jim Grover was a burly old man with thinning white hair. When Alicia entered the living room Buffy and Xander recognised her right away. She was the girl who the Vampire from the church had by the neck when they first entered the church. She'd escaped when Buffy and Xander went in.

"Y-yeah?" she stuttered. She was olive coloured in skin tone and had long black hair that was tied in plaits. She wore a purple vest top and pyjama pants to match. Her read glasses hung on the edge of her nose. To Buffy she still seemed kinda shaken up. _Who can blame her _she thought.

"We have some people here that have asked to see you," Mary said. Alicia seemed taken aback when she saw Buffy and Xander but adjusted a lot quicker than her grandparents. Buffy took the rains this time.

"Alicia my name is Buffy Summers and this is one of best friends Xander Harris-"

"_**I know**_," Alicia stated plainly. Confusion overwhelmed Buffy and Xander instantly.


	7. Episode 7: Settling In

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the 'Buffyverse', I am just a fan!)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 6  
Settling In

[-] Chapter 1

Alicia seemed to contemplate Buffy; she looked at her and seemed to see everything Buffy had been trying to hide from her friends. Alicia seemed a little weary of Buffy for some unknown reason but Buffy and Xander had no idea how Alicia Grover from Golden Pines could possibly know who they were. "What d'you mean you know?" Buffy asked puzzled. Alicia bowed her head in embarrassment and Buffy took the hint that she didn't want to say.

"Uh, maybe this is a conversation we should have with Alicia's mom and dad. Are they around?" Xander queried. Mary Grover exhaled deeply and cleaned her glass with a nearby hanker-chief.

"My Coni-Mae died two years ago...drowned," she said.

"I'm so sorry," Buffy started, "Two years ago I lost my mother to tumour.  
Mr. And Mrs Grover is it possible for me to go with Alicia upstairs or a walk around the neighbourhood? Just the two of us."

"My rooms upstairs," Alicia cut in before her grandparents could reply. Xander thanked Mrs. and Mr. Grover for their hospitality and told Buffy he would wait for her near the cars with Willow, Kennedy and Nicholas. She agreed and was led up a wooden staircase into Alicia's, not so spacious, room. They stood in silence for a while; Buffy leaned on a wall covered with posters of Physics theorems and one of Elvis. "So..." Alicia said as she sat down on her purple quilted bed.

"So..." Buffy mimicked. "Alicia...downstairs when you said you know me...w-what did you mean? Like you know me from the church or-"

"Well I don't know you...personally...I know...o-of you. I, um-" Alicia cut herself off as she began rummaging in a light green painted bedside cabinet and pulled out a leather bound book with a small latch. "Maybe this'll explain it better," Alicia said nervously. Her hand shook slightly from side-to-side as she handed Buffy the book. "G-go to the um...l-latest entry," Alicia said. Buffy smiled timidly and flipped through the pages of the book. It was her diary and by the looks of it she had had it since she was around eleven. Buffy began to read.  
_  
Dear Diary,  
__Hi it's me. Obviously__  
Actually lets start over. I saw her again. Last night when I was asleep. Who is she? __Like you'd tell me if you knew__. She's blonde I know that much. But why have I been dreaming about her for months now? I just don't get it. Every night it's a different story. I guess it all started at school when I felt this __**thing **__pass through me and then gravity seemed to kinda' attack me. Stacey loved that. __Bitch__. Since then I've been such a klutz...always breaking things. Grams almost buried me when I broke her Jesus statue.  
Last night she seemed older somehow. And there was this big cyborg guy thing. She called him Adam. I think...it's kinda like flashes. Sometimes I just hear the words. Other nights though there are these things...monsters from some cheesy movie. Growing and spreading. But in every dream there's always a girl. It's not always the blonde woman. I actually think I saw me in one before. Maybe it's not just me; maybe it's something in the cafeteria at school. __That's preposterous if you take into account people's weight and build and cross reference with health issues and diet...  
__Then this morning. The blonde woman saved us all from one of the monsters from my dreams...in the church. __**She**__ saved us. Who is this girl?___

Buffy folded the covers over and placed the diary on Alicia's desk. _Of course she'd be having dreams...I have them _she thought. She looked at Alicia who looked back like she knew Buffy. Even if not personally. Buffy began to part her lips to begin this difficult conversation But Alicia seemed to have the same idea.

The both said simultaneously, "You've had dreams about me," and "Who _are _you?" The girls just laughed it off and Buffy began to speak again.

"I'm...the...I'm the Vampire Slayer," she announced nervously trying to read Alicia's reaction. Instead she pondered Buffy, possibly for any signs of craziness. Alicia was defiantly smart enough to spot the signs and she'd probably already found about a million from that simple sentence.

"The huh?" Alicia asked. Then came the awkward conversation of telling a young girl that she would now have to leave her life behind her. Buffy started off by asking Alicia her age, she was sixteen. Buffy told Alicia that when she too became sixteen she was _called _to be the Slayer. One girl in all the World. Alicia looked like she was about to grab a notepad and begin taking notes. Buffy was rather brief on her explanation on the shadow men who created the first Slayer but she said enough for Alicia to understand. Half-way through the legend Alicia asked who Adam was and Buffy explained about Adam...but not the Initiative.  
That was a risky topic.  
She told her about Willow and how she used the Scythe to make every potential Slayer into a living breathing killing machine, although they weren't the words she used. Buffy chose every word she said about Ohio very carefully as to not frighten and anger Alicia as she did Kate a month ago. When Buffy finished her life story she watched and waited for a reaction from the newest Slayer.

"So..." Buffy said again.

"It's a nice story Buffy. Really convincing but you must be joking. Vampires, Demons and Slayers. I'm a science nerd, physics to be exact. You can't just expect me to believe something just because you say it's true," Alicia argued.

"In your diary you mentioned feeling something pass through you at school?" Buffy said.

"Something I ate," Alicia argued.

"The dreams you've been having...about demons and stuff,"

"I like horror movies,"

"The Vampire!" Buffy said angrily. She watched Alicia's expression fall. "Yeah...that thing in the church, that thing that I killed...was a vampire Alicia."

"It was the middle of the day Buffy. Could have been just a drug addict from the river," she argued. After strenuous conversation with Alicia, Buffy convinced her that not everything in the world can be categorised into particle diagrams. "What do I tell my grandparents?" Alicia asked saddened.

"I don't know," Buffy replied in the same tone. "I've actually only done this once before but thanks to my friends they took care of the family of the girl."

"What am I expected to do there Buffy? Eat, sleep and murder?" Alicia asked tearfully.

"Murder? Alicia being a Slayer does not mean we're above the law. Vampires and demons are soulless creatures. Well not all demons, some are okay...it's a long story. But I have a sister, Dawn...she's not a Slayer but she lives with us in Cleveland. You'll go to school with her three times a week and the rest yeah there will be training but it's not like military school. You'll be safe...looked after," Buffy declared.

"What do I do?" Alicia asked.

"About your family?" Buffy asked.

"No about the family fish tank," Alicia said sarcastically. Buffy smiled weakly and bowed her head. She didn't notice that Alicia had moved from the bed and opened her laptop computer. She began typing and clicking.

"What're you doing?" Buffy asked.

"You say that if I stay here then one of those new vampires will be made...well I can't do that to my family. My Grams has been through enough with mom and now with the church. A few weeks ago I applied to a school off the coast of Louisiana for science and robotics. They never replied but if I scan and print the brochure you could say to Grampa Jim that you're from the school and that I've been accepted," she announced.

"You think they'll believe me? I mean they saw me Slay a vampire this morning," Buffy thought.

"It's worth a shot," Alicia persuaded. Buffy took the false acceptance brochure from the printer under Alicia's desk and began to exit the room. Alicia's eyes followed her.

"I guess I'll uh...go through my stuff. Start packing..." she said. Buffy stopped before she could step onto the landing and turned to Alicia.

"Alicia...I'm sorry. I hate this...I hate being here and that you have to be here. I hate that there's evil and that we were chosen to fight it. But this has to be your choice. I'll only do this if it's what you want?"

"It's what they _need_," Alicia replied. As Buffy slowly descended down the stairs she seemed to let her mind take the wheel. She thought that Alicia was way too responsible for her age. She looked after her grandparents when it should be the other way around. Guilt consumed Buffy again as she felt responsible for Alicia _having_ to leave her home. Buffy had spent a good half hour in Alicia's room. _Fred would like Alicia_ she thought. Mrs. Grover was making tea in the Kitchen while her husband Jim was asleep on the living room couch. Buffy slowly stepped back out the living room as to not wake him. Mrs Grover spotted this from the kitchen.

"Oh don't mind him dear...all he needs is a cookie and a magazine and he'll be awake all night," she laughed. Buffy smiled too. Buffy placed on her fake smile and became a fake student recruitment teacher from the Louisiana High School for science and robotics. She handed the brochure over to Mary and she read every word carefully. She put the brochure on the counter and turned to Buffy.

"You're from a school?" she scrutinised.

"Y-yeah" Buffy smiled falsely. It killed her that she had to do this.

"But this morning I saw you-"

"Standard Martial art um...training at the school...P.E,"

"Oh...well how much is this going to cost me?"

"It's completely free Mrs. Grover, your grandchild is v-very smart and uh...smart,"

"Takes after her mother love,"

Buffy smiled. "When will she leave?" Mrs Grover asked.

"Now," Alicia said as she dragged a suitcase down the wooden stairs.

"Now?" Mrs Grover gasped. "But it's so late!"

"Traffic," Buffy added. Mrs Grover grabbed Alicia by the shoulder and pulled her into a warm family hug.

"Is this what you want?" Mary asked. Alicia shot a look at Buffy and she returned it with a smile. It was Alicia's choice whether or not she wanted to go, but she needed to go for the safety of her family.

"Yeah, t-this is w-what I want Grams," she replied. Buffy took Alicia's suitcase from her grasp and waited outside on the front lawn for her to say her goodbyes. In some ways Buffy thought that she had it easier than girls like Alicia. Sure she had the weight of the **entire **world to carry on her own, but she still got to keep her family and hold on to the scraps of a normal life she could find. During the walk down the narrow streets of Golden Pines Buffy and Alicia made casual small talk about Stacey Noonan, a girl from Alicia's school. Alicia was glad to be rid of Stacey. Alicia said she didn't have many friends so being taken somewhere where she could relate to people seemed like the upside of the situation to her. When Buffy and Alicia reached the High School Alicia walked over to the building and placed her hand on its walls. She had spent days in that building hating life and she felt like she'd left a part of herself in there. Kennedy was pacing around the car and had adopted and angry posture, Xander was sitting incredibly still and Nicholas just hummed an odd old 40's movie tune. Willow was fast asleep across the back seat of Giles car.

Buffy began, "when did this-"

"Ten minutes," he stated boldly.

"We can't wake her up!" Kennedy said loudly continuing her pace.

"I told you she's fine, she's been through quite a bit during the past few days and the spell that tore her memory from her must be wearing off," Nicholas replied to Kennedy calmly.

"How d'you know?" she asked angrily.

"Less of the attitude love, and because I can feel it...mystically. It took a lot to keep Tabitha's memory from her," he said looking luridly at Willow.

"Oh, right...good well... My Willow's strong, s-she'll be fine," Kennedy mumbled.

"Uh hi," Alicia said from behind the trunk of the car with a swift wave of the hand. Everybody froze to take the in the girl. The gang all studied her from head to toe.

"Guys this is Alicia," Buffy said introducing her. "You can all close your jaws and stop staring now." There were mumbled 'Hey's', 'Hi's' and 'Hello's' and Xander and Nicholas loaded her suitcase in the trunk of Nicholas's car seeing as Giles's' was loaded with magical urns and powerful hex bags. Alicia spotted Willow unconscious on the back seat in the car.

"Is she-"

"She's Willow...she's a...llooonnnngg story," Xander said.

"Magical Witch, went evil, did the magic vampire killer spell on girls all around the globe," Alicia said.

"Apparently not that long," Xander said.

"Buffy told me the story," Alicia smiled. Alicia turned to Buffy, "so what now?"

"Now...we go I think?" she said giving brief glances to her companions.

"Sounds good," Xander said.

"Thank heavens, hallelujah!" Nicholas exclaimed. Everybody turned to look at him. "My car, beautiful as it is, isn't good for my back," he said so as not to look like a mad man.

"Alicia, you're with me and Buffy in my car if you'd like to just jump into the backseat, if you'll excuse me...I have to urinate," Nicholas said.

"Where?" Buffy asked. "Here?"

"It's either on that wall or on your shoes Alexander," he said shooting Xander a look. "Why? Tempted to sneak a peek?" Nicholas mocked Buffy. Buffy looked at him un-amused.

"We'll be in the car," she said. Nicholas scurried of to a wall behind the school building and everybody else waited for him to return. Buffy warned Alicia that it was over a day's ride back to Ohio but Alicia assured Buffy that if need be she would sleep on the gear shift. Sitting in silence in Nicholas' car, Buffy was once again overwhelmed with the loud voice of her mind. It told her that she was passed it, she'd done her job and that even if she rounds up all the slayers she'll never **be** finished. That there'll always be another big bad and she'll never have that country house _if_ she reaches eighty with her Vampire boyfriend who will be the same age he was then.

"Buffy!" said Alicia loudly but Buffy was busy being consumed by her mind. "Buffy!" Alicia shouted again and this time it caught her attention.

"W-what?" Buffy asked. Alicia pointed her finger towards the front windscreen. Buffys' eyes met a young girl about Alicia's age running as fast as she could towards the school. Something had terrified her but Buffy didn't know why until she saw a badly dressed man wearing incredibly tacky clothes jump right over the parking lot boundary wall and landing with even a pause.

Alicia began, "is that a-"

"Vampire," Buffy stated in a hushed whisper. "Can you reach under my seat and get me a stake?"

"For what? You're gonna ask him out to dinner?" Alicia asked frantically.

"Never mind!" Buffy said as she rummaged through the glove compartment and found a #2 pencil.

"Oh, s-stake...wood..." Alicia muttered as Buffy sped after the Vampire. The girls' screams echoed throughout the area of the school and Buffy feared she might be too late. She reached the back of the economics lab and found the Vampire feeding on the young girl who was being forced up against the wall.

"Oh c'mon supper's in a few hours, you know what they say about greedy people," she taunted. The vampire took his fangs from the girls next and revealed to small puncture wounds surrounded by blood. His yellow eyes glowed in the light of the security camera behind Buffy.

"Lucky for you girl, I ain't people," the vamp replied.

"Help me," the girl pleaded from behind the vampire. Buffy pulled the vampire by the fibres of his collar and launched him at a blue dumpster leaving a dent in the metal. The girl looked at Buffy in shock, she was blonde, big breasted and wearing too much jewellery, of course the vampire had ripped the chain around her neck in half and it lay on the floor.

"Run," Buffy told her. The girl sped off as fast as she could back towards the parking lot.

"Slayer," growled the vampire as it got to its feet.  
Meanwhile back at the car Xander and Kennedy seemed oblivious to what was going on, probably because they were facing the opposite way to the fence that the vampire had leaped over. When Alicia saw Buffy disappear around the corner her instincts kicked into overdrive. She fiddled around under the front seat and found Buffys' description of a stake. She pulled the latch on Nick's car and ran after Buffy. Alicia was surprised at how fast she actually was. It was only when she turned the corner that she stopped dead in her tracks. Stacey Noonan came running around the building holding her neck and whimpering like a baby. _She's the girl the monster was after_ Alicia thought. Alicia quickly stashed her stake away in her denim jacket. Stacey spotted Alicia and sped up.

"You've gotta help me," she said desperately.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Alicia asked convincingly.

"There was this guy...a-a-a-and h-his face was...a-and then t-this g-g-g-girl," Stacey stammered.

"Y'know I hear that guy has a history of doing this stuff. The last girl this happened to caught like rabies or something," Alicia said. She tried to feel sorry for Stacey but after the hell she'd put her through since junior high and considering she'd probably never see her again Alicia figured it was time she got her own back. "No Herpes I think it was."

"AAARGGHHH!" Stacey exclaimed as she sped past Alicia. Alicia laughed silently to herself for a moment until the sound of trashcans being kicked around and violent punches being thrown put knots in her stomach. But as terrified as she was she couldn't stop her feet moving forward. She peered around the edge of the building and caught a glimpse of Buffy fighting the vampire. She'd blocked one of his punches and returned it with a blow to the stomach. He bent over clutching his gut. Buffy grabbed his hair and pushed down while she raised her knee so the two collided together. Buffy pulled the pencil from her jeans pockets and stuck it through the chest of the vampire. It screamed out like a child throwing a tantrum. Alicia watched as the vampires skin melted from its face leaving a rotten skeleton that crumbled to dust upon the floor. Buffy exhaled heavily and shook the dust from her hands. She turned to back out of the economics lab alleyway when she spotted Alicia shaking at the entrance.

"Y-you just...how did you...I m-mean h-he just-" Alicia stuttered and so Buffy cut her off.

"Hey, it's okay. Look, I'm fine," she said reassuringly. "Soon you'll be able to do that without even breaking a sweat...well y'know that's just a metaphor but you get the picture."

"B-but he j-just-"

"It's okay really...he was one of the easy ones."  
**  
**[-] Chapter 2

Buffy walked a shaking Alicia back to the car. Buffy had her doubts that Alicia may not be cut out for the 'Slayage' Biz but fate had chosen her to be and Buffy would just have to do what she could to ease her into her new life of demon fighting and world saving. Alicia told Buffy that the girl she saved was Stacey Noonan and Buffy listened attentively but it was hard to understand her because of the occasional stutter and vigorous shaking. They met up with Nicholas at the car who was tapping his expensive Armani shoes against the pavement angrily. "What the hell happened?" he asked.

"Vampire," Buffy casually stated.

"Were? Here?"

"Just around back,"

"Thanks for the warning,"

"Sorry I didn't have to time tell you there was a vampire before he made a girl into chowder," Buffy said sarcastically.

"Yes...well I um...we'd best be off wouldn't you say so?" he asked as he stopped tapping his foot and pulled the latch on passenger seat door.

"Yeah I guess," Buffy said as she shot a smile at Alicia who returned a nervous one. Alicia put herself back into her previous position in the backseat while Buffy did the same in the drivers. Buffy looked around and noticed that the cherry red convertible had disappeared. "Were is-"

"They left when I got back...to get a head start or something," Nicholas replied.

"Oh...okay yeah I guess." Buffy reluctantly turned the key in the ignition and Nicholas's car roared awake. She watched as Nicholas tilted his head to the appropriate angle and began breathing heavily. She assumed he'd shut his eyes but without removing his glasses there was no way to be sure. As they left the borders of Golden Pines she heard Nicholas's breathing soften and his mouth parted ever so slightly. She instantly became jealous of the fact that he'd managed to fall asleep at a time like that. Alicia's pen colliding with the paper of her diary was the only non-mechanical sound in the car. She seemed so trusting of Buffy even though they had only met an hour ago.  
Well if we're talking technically.  
But from Alicia's point of view or prospective, she'd known Buffy or dreamed of her for about a month now. Alicia would ask the occasional question of Buffy like "What's the house like?" and "Were will I sleep?" or "Will I have a roommate?" She steered clear of the Slayer questions which Buffy found odd. But she soon remembered that when she was called to the Slayer stage spotlight she took a blind eye to the facts and that must've been what Alicia was trying to do. The roads were quiet considering it was 10:27 pm but Buffy envied the people tucked snugly in their beds with their loved ones beside them.  
Angel.  
Spike.  
_They're just so similar. I've killed or at least tried to kill both of them at one time or another. When I lose my cool with either of them either the world ends literally or I almost get raped on the bathroom floor. Things were a lot simpler when all they wanted was to kill me. And now they both have a soul.  
A beautiful soul that shines brightly and is only visible by my eyes.  
I could have a future with Angel...someday. But Spike can...or maybe he can't now with the soul and all. But that doesn't matter to me...all I want is...the both of them. Admittedly Angel has warmth that takes you in and holds you when you feel like the world has abandoned you. But Spike has the element of danger, surprise and desire. Angel's danger side is defiantly worse than Spikes...but Spike can also take you in and hold you. And they both wanted me...I kinda want both of them too. Maybe someday soon I'll be able to choose what my heart wants...but not now.  
Unfortunately._

Buffy was interrupted in her thoughts when she took a sharp turn and shook Nicholas awake. He offered to take the wheel from her and let her get some rest. They swapped sides in the car and Buffy shot a glance at the back seat. The car dashboard told her that it was 11:52 pm and Alicia was still journaling. She couldn't understand what she could possibly have to write about for so long. Except the fact that y'know...she was now a Slayer and was leaving home and stuff.  
But still.  
Buffy had put so much on hold during her two and a half days' trip from Ohio to California.  
Faith being shot with some purple energy and emerging with a brand new tattoo of a Dream catcher like the one on the tomb.  
The sun-resistant vampires, which Giles was still in the dark about. But she couldn't have that conversation over the phone. Especially when now she knew Spike was one of them.  
And then there was Rona and Amalia's mystery man from the cemetery who seemed to have dominance over the vampires.  
Part of her didn't want to go back and face it all. She was woken by the feeling of her cell phone vibrating in her **–Fred's- **jeans pocket. Nicholas was still driving and Alicia was spread out on the back seat with her journal wide-open on the floor. The caller I.D read _Xander_.

"Hello?" she greeted drowsily.

"Buffy, it's me," Xander said sharply.

"What is it, what's wrong? Is it Willow?" Buffy frantically asked.

"Buffy relax, Will's still sleepin'. We're about a mile ahead of you guys and there's a motel across the street. Kennedy and I are so beat we're in no state to drive so we're gunna grab a room for the night," he said.

"Yeah that sounds like a good idea. We'll meet you there soon," she hung up the phone and stuffed it back into the jeans. Xander had told her that it was 'The Horse & Carriage Motel'. Buffy turned to Nicholas and told him to pull over when he saw the sign. She had woken Alicia too and so she explained to them that they were going to grab a room for the night. Xander had had around a hundred and fifty dollars on him when they found him on the side-walk back in Ohio and Nicholas had some money stashed in the glove compartment. Alicia pulled out a huge wad of cash. From the expression on Buffys' and Nicholas' faces Alicia thought she'd better explain.

"Grams gave me half of my mom's life insurance money and my life savings is in their too," she said. Buffy smiled sympathetically and turned to Nicholas.

"Where are we exactly?" she asked as she turned her gaze to the empty interstate ahead of them.

"Arizona last I checked," he replied. Buffy exhaled at the thought that she still had to pass through Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and finally Ohio to get back to the Manor. Alicia had insisted that she pay for her own room and that she wanted it for herself so that she could 'catch some shuteye' and journal. And true enough about a mile and a half up the interstate Nicholas found the motel parking lot. Buffy greeted Xander with a sharp hug.

"Will and Kennedy already got a room," Xander said in a yawn.

"She's awake?" Buffy perked up.

"Nope...Kennedy carried her up there. Nick told us before we left it'll be a while before she wakes up properly," he said saddened.

"Just what we need right now...another coma," Buffy mumbled.

"Buff," Xander said with a scrutinizing tone and expression. Buffy tiredly brushed her hair out of her eyes and met Xander gaze.

Buffy began, "sorry...I'm cranky when I haven't slept for two days straight."

"Yeah, I get that," Nicholas had just walked past Buffy with Alicia into the lobby of the motel, "Well I guess I'll follow Nick and go count some sheep, night Buff." Xander placed a comforting hand on Buffys' shoulder before heading in the direction of Nicholas and Alicia. Minutes later Buffy saw Alicia head up the pale blue stairs into a room of her own. Nicholas walked over to Buffy timidly.

"Thanks for the room," Buffy said genuinely.

"Yyyyyyyeesssss...about that. I'm afraid moneys a little short and these room prices are outlandish so I'm afraid..." Nicholas jingled one set of keys in front of Buffy.

"You have _got _to be kidding."

Buffy reluctantly headed up the same pale blue stairs as Alicia just did with Nicholas. The place seemed deserted except for a very masculine woman with hairy legs and a short bald business man making out at the end of the walkway. They exchanged a few dollar bills before entering their room. Nicholas turned the key in the door of room 257 and it swung open with a high-pitched sound coming from the hinges. The motel room was a typical cliché: its singular curtain was draped over a rain spattered window. The carpet and walls were a pale green and beige colour mix and the covers on the rectangular double bed matched them. The bathroom door to the left of the bed was closed. The one bedside cabinet was dominated by dust and a small lamp stood next to a leather-bound bible on top of it. A dresser at the foot of the bed had a small glass-screened TV perched on top of it. "Well this is...home-ish," Buffy said.

"To put it one way," Nicholas mumbled. "I think I'll just grab a shower." Buffy nodded. She watched as Nicholas entered the bathroom and shut the door behind him. She heard his clothes drop to the tiles on the floor and he put down his sunglasses on the sink. The tap for the shower squeaked as he twisted it and then every other comprehendible sound from the bathroom was drowned out by the rush of water from the shower head. Buffy wanted to sleep...really _really_ **wanted** to sleep but if she didn't shower tonight she knew she wouldn't get a chance to in the morning. She casually cast her eyes on everything in the room; she even flipped through the bible for a minute for two. The small wall clock read that it was 00:34. As she waited for Nicholas to get out of the shower she decided to switch on the TV.

_Maybe this thing has TiVo _she thought. She pressed the small button with her freezing cold and delicate finger. The TV roared to life and cast a white glow around the room. The static echoed loudly in Buffys' ears as she fumbled around with the remote. She pressed a button on the remote and a random channel came on. She fumbled with the pillows when she heard something that made her stop dead.

_"Oh Johnny...yeah that's it! Right there! Yeah Yeah __**YES!**__" _cried a woman wearing next-to-nothing and sitting on top of a man wearing...his birthday suit. As Buffy frantically changed the channel the door to the bathroom eased open and revealed a half naked Nicholas with just a white towel wrapped around his waist. Buffy couldn't help but stare, the water and steam fell gracefully in-between his abs, he ran his fingers through his tanned brown hair and made it stand on end. As he moved over the threshold he revealed his sunglasses perched on top of the sink in the bathroom. Buffy hadn't noticed he wasn't wearing them until then...she wasn't paying much attention to the part of his anatomy above the neck.

"Free cable porn aye? Full of surprises aren't you love," he said.

Buffy began stuttering, "w-what? **No** no-no n-no...I-I-I w-was-"

"Relax, what you do in your own time is none of my business," he smiled.

"Honestly...No n-no-" she stopped stuttering as Nicholas held up his hand in a surrender. She steadily got up from the bed and plotted the remote in her place. Her cheeks were flushing out of embarrassment. "I-I'll just g-go grab a shower," she mumbled as she headed to the bathroom. Just before she shut the door Nicholas said,

"Er...you could be in for a cold one I'm afraid." Buffy slammed the door shut and turned the lock. She leaned heavily on the back of it and mumbled to herself,

"Not a problem...really." Buffy undressed and stepped into the shower. She had about seven minutes of warm water before cold water rushed through the shower head and onto her hair. Standing in that shower...small as it was, reminded her of the time she'd spent yesterday in Angels penthouse apartment. When she sat for moments...just moments and he'd look at her and she was wonderful. It was the moments like that that they shared which made leaving Wolfram & Hart so difficult. Every time she left him, or he left her she grieved as though he would never come back. Eventually they saw each other again but the time in-between felt like centuries.  
She had gotten in the shower in an average mood but had come out in a bit of a fussy one. She opened the door and found that Nicholas was watching early morning CNN in just his boxers and a pair of blue stripy socks. Buffy was too emotional to notice. She had put on the clothes she was wearing previously and then lay down on the bed with her head on the pillow and stared at the ceiling.  
_  
The Five Stages of Grief.  
Stage 1: Denial. _  
"You alright Buffy?" Nicholas asked.

"Fine. Why?" she replied without taking her eyes off of the ceiling.

"You don't seem in the best of moods-"

"Well I'm fine."

_Stage 2: Anger. _  
Nicholas began, "is it something I've done or-or said or-"

"God Nicholas stop being so self-centred. 'Buffy doesn't look all happy and chipper, hmm? Must be something I did because I'm ruler of the world with my Italian shoes and perfect physique'." Buffy replied in a bad imitation of the man next to her.

_Stage 3: Bargaining.  
_"Okay sorry, forget I asked. But if there's anything I can do please let me know?" Nicholas said taking his eyes off of her. Buffy turned her head and looked into his face.

"No Nick, I'm sorry. You know what will make me feel better? If you go back to Ohio and train the girls and I'll go back to L.A!" she replied with a hint of sarcasm but mostly hope.

_Stage 4: Depression.  
_"I'm sorry Buffy but you know I can't do that," he said sympathetically.

"I j-just, I get up in the morning and think about everything I have to do that day. What training schedule, the girls' schools, Xanders alcoholic tendencies and now Willow's coma amnesia thing. I can't sleep at night because I feel like there's no point in me getting up the next day if I'm just going to feel like this," she said saddened and with glistening tears on her bottom lashes.

_Stage 5: Acceptance.  
_Buffy looked at the wall clock and read 01:07. "Why am I even telling you this?" she whispered to herself rhetorically.

"Maybe...in some twisted way...you think you can trust me," he smiled. Buffy smiled too. "Now come on...what's really bothering you?" Buffy turned away and battled with herself.

_Sometimes it's easier to tell a stranger what you're feeling than family _she thought. Even though Nicholas wasn't a stranger because they'd been living together for a month...he was as close as she was going to get. Buffy turned to Nicholas, "I miss him."

"Him?...Or them?" he asked. Buffy dropped her gaze. She vowed to herself, not in so many words, that she would never truly admit her feelings for Spike to anybody.  
Ever.  
She would sometimes wonder if it were Angel in her position and Cordelia woke from her coma...would he love Cordy too?  
Possibly more.  
When she thought that he might love Cordelia as well as her it ate her up inside. She couldn't do that to Angel, she couldn't bear to hurt him. Nicholas spotted Buffys' struggle with her inner demons. "The things about masks Buffy...you wear them long enough they become hard to take off." Buffy sighed. It was time to give up the mask she had been wearing since she was brought back from the dead two years ago. Her mask had been selfish...although it made her life slightly easier...it worried those who loved and trusted her to be honest with them.

"I-I m-miss _them_," she said in final acceptance before Nicholas gestured her into his arms were she wept onto his chest. "I-I-I-I c-can't breathe, I feel like a cant b-breathe."

[-] Chapter 3

Buffy cried herself to sleep that night...like so many others. But this time she had company, a stranger that understood and related to her. She remembered that the last time she looked at the wall clock it was passed 2 a.m. She swiftly fell in a slumber on Nicholas's bare chest. When she woke up at 8 a.m. she found Nicholas fully dressed and sitting in a tattered old arm chair near the bathroom door. He had his feet perched up on to the foot of the bed and had his nose buried deeply into 'Child's First Holy Bible.' It was bound in red leather and the writing on the cover was golden.

She sat up and her eyes were filled with the morning sunlight that shone through the window and then the small gap in the curtains. She covered her eyes with her hands and grunted lightly. Nicholas didn't even notice she was awake. She looked down at herself, she was still fully clothed but had a plaid red and green blanket draped over her. She smiled at it and then at Nicholas. "Morning," she said. His head popped up from the book and revealed he was wearing his sunglasses. Buffys' polite smile fell slightly.

"You're up," he responded taking his feet off the bed. Buffy nodded drowsily and folded the blanket off of her.

"How long was I out?" she asked.

"Couple hours," he responded,

"Been awake long?"

"Never went to sleep," he smiled. She smiled awkwardly.

"Did I snore?" she asked.

"No," he beamed. She was about to get off the bed and walk to the bathroom when Nicholas interrupted her. "I thought you might be hungry," he said as he pointed to the nightstand covered in soda cans, various bags of potato chips and liquorish candy.

"You went all out," she replied as she pulled open a can of 'Senor Fizz.'

At the same time a couple doors down Xander was just getting out of the shower. He'd had one of his nightmares that night where he was standing outside the High School and he could see Anya fighting for her life through the north hall window. When he began to run at her he was restrained by Buffy and Willow.

"_**What are you doing!" **_he'd ask. But they would just stare at his as he struggled. The dream ended at the moment the Bringer's knife cut Anya almost clean in half. His shower was an attempt at trying to focus on something else. He'd had this dream before, almost every night since the 'incident'.  
He'd wake up in the Hyperion and the manor in a cold sweat and not knowing where he was. Although since their little road trip and the frequent naps he'd taken in the car...he'd slept and woken up...completely fine. Sometimes Anya hadn't even crossed his mind.  
He felt ashamed of that fact.  
He slowly got himself dressed in the same clothes he'd stolen from Golden Pines and read the wall clock.  
7:52 a.m.  
Every room in the motel was the same but Xander was sure he'd got the dirtiest. Last night he'd opened the door to his room and didn't bother to even turn on the light. He'd climbed straight onto the bed but shot up right when he heard something crunch under him. He'd fumbled for the wall light and spotted the thing he'd crunched.  
A Condom Wrapper.  
It lay scrunched up on the bed. Xander exhaled heavily and decided to sleep on the armchair. It was arguably one of the best nights sleeps he'd had in a while except for the y'know...night terrors.  
He got himself dressed and decided to switch on the T.V considering he was a little early.  
_Ahhh, _he thought calmly, _cheap cable porn_ he smiled.

Kennedy woke up first, her first thought was _Willow._ She pushed the covers off of her body and turned to Willow who was still laying in the same position that she had put her in before she ventured to sleep. "Will?" Kennedy asked timidly as she brushed a strand of hair out from her face. Kennedy got no reply. Not even a twitch of the fingers like in the movies. Kennedy didn't care to even look at her clock. She gathered up when she needed and took a swig of complimentary mouthwash from the bathroom sink. She took Willow in her arms and headed down to the parking lot. She got a very strange look from the man at the front desk. Kennedy realised he probably hadn't seen that Kennedy had company when she checked in last night because of the dark. She laid Willow carefully across the back seat and tilted in her head to, what looked like to her, a comfy angle. She locked the doors and headed up to Xanders room. She knocked loudly on the door and heard him rummaging around behind the door.  
She knocked again. "Xander?" she asked. The door slid open and revealed Xander upper body. Everything from the waist down was hidden behind the door.

"Kennedy!" he said shocked yet with a smile. "You're...early."

"Yyyyeahhhh..." she tried to pear her head around the door to see what he was hiding. "...sorry I just wanna get going," she said with a stern look. "Are you okay?"

"Fine!" Xander answered quickly. "Er...y'know what? I uh...need to um...use the bathroom!" he tried to say convincingly. "Why d-don't you go wake Buffy and I'll meet you by the car?"

"Suurrreeee," she replied. Xander quickly shut the door in her face and mumbled something behind it that even with her enhanced Slayer senses she couldn't make sense of. She headed won to Buffy's and Nicholas' door. As she was about to knock the door knob twisted and revealed Buffy fully clothed and ready. "Nice timing," Kennedy complimented casually.

Buffy began, "yeah. A-and Willow? I-is she-"

"No change," Kennedy announced grievously. Buffy smiled awkwardly and sorrowfully. Both she and Nicholas locked the door behind them and followed Kennedy to the cars where they found Xander and Alicia eager and waiting. Buffy and Xander both shot worried glances at Willow and then met each others' gaze. They hugged each other quickly as they were both feeling the same amount of worry for their beloved best friend. Nicholas said that considering meal and bathroom breaks that they should get back to the manor by about 5:30 a.m. tomorrow morning. The thought of spending another day in Nicholas car was sickening to Buffy. But she had to do it.  
For Dawn.  
After being in the car for around three hours Kennedy, who was driving, turned to Xander. "I'm worried," she announced.

"Me too," he replied. He didn't need to ask what she meant. She regretted telling Xander how she felt but it just burst out of her. She casually shrugged off his sympathetic hand and gave him a cocky smile that he saw right through. He'd known Kennedy long enough to see right through her rock hard exterior. The gang stopped off several times to use restrooms and get the various items of food and water but other than that it was the most silent they had been over the last few days. Buffy assumed that everybody was disappointed with what they had discovered on their trip. Her fantasy was that she would first get to see what was left of Sunnydale since she left, see Angel and fix Willow. But she felt it was naive of her to wish for something good to happen for once.  
Buffy without noticing had woken up from a deep sleep in the back seat of Nicholas's car. Alicia and Nick were having clever banter in the front seat and were listening to the radio. _I must've dozed off and they moved me back here _she thought as she lifted her head from the warm leather of the seat.

"You're awake," Alicia smiled.

"Where are we? What time is it?" she asked frantically trying to focus her fuzzed eyes on the digital clock on the car dash board.

"04:56, we'll get back to the manor at Sunrise," Nicholas announced in a subtle attempt at calming her. She just exhaled heavily and Nicholas and Alicia continued their conversation. "So you were saying about when you toppled over at church choir..."  
Buffy glanced back through the trunk window and saw the headlights of the cherry red car. She was unable to see who was driving due to the brightness of the lights.  
04:58...  
05:02...  
05:17...  
05:22...Nicholas's sleek black car turned the cliff corner which Buffy remembered lead to the private cliff side estate the manor was on. She remembered the first time she had taken this route to the manor...when she'd left the Hyperion. She could hear the sound of the waves crashing against the small mountain cliff through the small opening of a window, the silence that everybody allowed when they laid eyes on the fortress-like building. It still took her breath away to see its exterior even though she had been living in it for months. As they pulled onto the narrow road Buffy could see the black sky turning a lighter shade of dark blue from the edge of the cliff.  
They were a little early.  
Buffy expected to see Dawn ready and waiting for her and began panicking when she stepped out the car and walked up to the rusted iron gates and Dawn was nowhere to be seen. She became distracted as Kennedy and Xander carried Willow out of the car and up to the gates beside Buffy. Nicholas and Alicia shortly followed them. He punched in the combination to open the gate and they did so silently.

The manor was still and quiet, the drapes were shut behind the lounge and dining room window and the huge door was open slightly. Buffy looked at her friends nervously and gave them all a _get ready _look. She raised the palm of her hand up to push the door open further.

"B!" Faith said in more of an announcement than a surprise. Buffy turned rapidly to find Faith wearing dark jeans and a denim jacket surrounded by about twenty-three girls.

"Faith?" Buffy asked. Faith smiled...more like beamed at her. She began walking up the few steps leading to the entrance to the manor and the girls followed. Buffy watched as one girl opened the door to the manor and revealed what she really wished she hadn't seen. The entrance hall was filled with sleeping bags, medical supplies and injured girls. Some worse off than others. The first floor landing was packed with girls, sadly none of which she recognised.

"Well look at the cavalry, just in the _Nick _of time...pun intended," she winked at Nicholas. The girls hauled in the manor and spread out. As they did so another patrol of around nineteen girls this time left the manor and headed down the small narrow road. They were stocked with weapons and first aid kits. Faith continued, "Guess you got some catchin' up to do. What's with red?" Before Buffy could answer she glanced at Willow. Buffy felt like she'd been given the pieces of a puzzle and she knew she might not be able to put them together and find the missing picture. She turned to Faith,

"Uh...I-Is her room-"

"Yeah, it's still _her _room," Faith said with a confused look. Buffy signalled Kennedy and Xander to carry Willow up to their room and the two entered the house and disappeared up the stairs. Nicholas shortly followed with Alicia and her bags leaving Buffy and Faith on the porch. They stood in silence for a while, each with questions they wanted to ask each other but were mutually afraid of the answers they'd be given. Buffy started.

"Faith...what happened here?" Buffy asked. Faith exhaled heavily and dropped her gaze to the floor.

"A lot of the girls thought that you'd abandoned us B. I mean last time you left and I was in charge things didn't go so well. Buffy get Axe and Faith and girls go boom. But as for what happened here I don't think that's a question for me. It's a question for Giles and the brat in the library. They hardly ever leave that place...constantly like Zombies with their noses in Demonology or whatever." Faith saw Buffy's expression change when she referred to Dawn. "B-Buffy there's um...s-s-something you should know-"

"I know about the vampires Faith," Buffy said with a stern look at the ground and a single tear down her cheek. Faith was taken aback but before she could say anything Buffy was already inside the manor, passing bleeding girls and bloodied weapons without a single sympathetic glance at either of them.

"Sometimes I don't know why I bother," Faith mumbled as she followed Buffy inside the manor and shut the door behind her. Buffy passed Nicholas who suspiciously rushed right up the stairs without a word to anybody, she passed a curious Andrew who tended to the wounds of a petite brunette girl and she passed Robin who stood by with bandages and alcohol for the wounds. She opened the closed door that lead to the secondary lounge, Kitchen, Laundry room, Basement and finally library. She pushed the double doors open and found the library in complete chaos. Books and volumes were piled upon one another in stacks like a small city on the small round tables. Buffy assumed Willow's magic cabinet had been broken into because there was a smoking purple mixture in a rusted red bowl sitting on the floor by what looked like a coffee shop counter.

"Dawn!" Buffy exclaimed hopefully. Dawn's petite body stepped out from behind an empty stack. She wore a red blouse and blue jeans. She looked at Buffy with an extremely uneasy expression.

_Thank God_ Dawn thought in her head as she dropped her gaze from Buffy to the once red carpet. Giles's head popped up from behind one of the piles of demon volumes like he was a curious mole. He sighed heavily in relief at the sight of Buffy and took her in a hug that warmed her physically and emotionally. Giles began to speak.

"Questions later," Buffy smiled as she interrupted him. "I just wanna bask." Giles laughed and hugged Buffy for a second time.  
Dawn folded her arms across her chest and walked up to her sister just as Giles freed her from his grasp.

"You okay?" Dawn asked with a plain look.

"Right now? Never better," Buffy beamed.

"Good," Dawn said as she raised her hand from her chest and swung it so that it collided heavily with Buffy's beautifully pale skin. Buffy's head was sent to the left and her smile was wiped off her face. She grasped the area where Dawn had struck her with her left hand. She turned back to Dawn with tears across her eyelashes in complete shock and confusion. Dawn also had tears, streaming heavily down her rosy cheeks, but they weren't ones of happiness or sadness but pure anger.  
"**I spent two days wondering whether you, Willow and Xander where lying dead in a ditch or** **river or god knows what else. You abandoned me Buffy. **Do that to me again and _**do not**_ bother coming back," she said in finality. Buffy seemed to hear what Dawn said but didn't take it in; like it went in one ear and out the other leaving a cold draft through her mind.  
Buffy's tears now streamed as Dawn's; did but Dawn couldn't bear to look at her sister's face any longer for fear of striking her again. She stormed out of the library without as much as a glance at Giles or Buffy. Buffy glanced up at Giles who refused to look her in the eye. She took that to mean that he felt the same as Dawn but all those feelings left him when he saw her.  
Buffy dropped to her knees and she clutched her stomach in emotional pain. Gilles took a seat next to her and held her for moments.  
Just moments.  
Buffy felt guilty...no that was an understatement...she felt...remorseful and ashamed. Buffy didn't spare a thought during her trip away wondering whether Dawn was okay because Buffy knew she would be. But looking back on it Buffy realised just how right Dawn was...Buffy abandoned her sister in the middle of the night and only shared one single brief phone call during their time apart. If the roles were reversed Buffy admitted she would have done much worse than a slap.

Giles cleared the book piles off the main table and helped Buffy to a wooden seat. He gave her a delicate handkerchief with which she dried her eyes and crumpled it up. Giles placed his hand on hers and said, "Buffy what happened over th-these last few days? Last time I heard from you, you were going to see Lorne and then...well nothing. How's Willow?" Buffy sighed heavily. She'd been dreading having telling Giles all about what had happened but decided then that it was now or never.

"How long yeah got?" Buffy smiled falsely.

"I'd prefer the short version if you would. I've been up for hours," he replied with a laugh.

"When we got to Wolfram & Hart Giles...Lorne couldn't find anything. So we go to the white room and meet somebody called the conduit who summons Hecate and Osiris-"

"Good lord," Giles said taking his hand off hers and putting it around his mouth.

"Cliff notes version...Willow's spells, y'know bringing me back, restoring Angels' soul and now the whole Slayer thing made them angry and so they decided to tip the scale back-"

"The vampires," Giles gasped.

"Yeeeahhhh...the whole amnesia deal was their doing too. Apparently they 'didn't want the slayer interfering before they could re-balance the scale between good and evil'." Buffy said in an imitation of Holland Manners.

"So she's permanently going to refer to me as 'the British man'?" Giles asked.

"Heard that huh?" Buffy asked. Giles nodded with a smile. "No she's upstairs sleeping. When she wakes up she'll be fine. Hopefully it's soon though; I was beginning to losing my mind. But y'know what about you? I mean all the girls, when I left there wasn't nearly as many girls in the entire building than there is out there right now."  
Giles seemed to take in Buffy's experience with every word she said. Processing it so that he might say the right thing for the conversation.

"Well um, the moment I got off the phone with you Dawn convinced me to get out of the library. So I got a shower and got dressed and decided to go for a walk...get the morning newspaper and-" Giles was cut off mid-sentence.

"Cliff notes version will do fine Giles, I've been up a while myself," Buffy joked.

"Yes well um...I was pulled into an alleyway by what I thought was a man trying to mug me. Turns out this man had something wrong with his face and had animal like teeth. I refused to believe it at first but when I was bitten at the wrist I suppose you could say I was convinced. The next thing I know I'm in the back of a Limousine with Quentin Travers and several other watchers. They told me of a magical shift in this reality by an unknown force and now vampires can walk around in the daylight-"

"Not all vampires Giles, some. There's this whole thing were...I'm sorry go on," Buffy said interrupting him.

"Well I suppose that's a bit of good news. Anyway they also caught wind of our little spell back in Sunnydale. Since the Council Building and all its records where destroyed they decided to rebuild but changed their plans when they heard of...well...what we did. Over the course of the last few months the council have used the mystics of the Coven back in England and what was left of the money they had to build or buy estates like this...training facilities if you will, all over the world. They came to tell me that it is our responsibility to take care of the Slayers from North America and they will handle the rest. But while they renovate the other buildings around the world girls have been hoarded here by the hundreds. It's only for a few days but Faith has been forced to take charge of round the clock patrols now that there are vampires walking the streets at daylight hours. They're stronger Buffy and-"

"And faster...more intelligent and over-all...better," she said finishing his sentence for him.

"For lack of a better term," Giles nodded.

"God..." Buffy said tiredly whilst brushing stray hairs from her eyes. "How long will all these girls be here for?"

"They said a few days...maybe a week. Buffy we'll get by I promise," he said reassuringly.

"I hope you're right," she said meeting his gaze. "Anything on what happened at the cemetery a few days ago? Faiths' new tattoo and Rona and Amalia's mystery man?"

"We just haven't had the time," Giles said as he let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding.  
They sat in silence for a few moments.  
"Y-you mentioned a rule for the vampires immune to sunlight?" Giles queried.

"I'll explain later Giles. Please tell me my room is still my room?" Buffy asked.

"Actually Dawn gave up her room to a pair of Hispanic twins yesterday and has moved into yours. I'm afraid you've earned yourself a dangerously angry teenage roommate," Giles smiled and Buffy did too.

Buffy began, "I'm just glad that I can finally settle in-" Buffy was interrupted by Xander frantically bursting into the library. He was sweating and out of breathe.

"Buffy!" he exclaimed. Buffy stood up from her chair and met Xanders' gaze.

"Xander what is it? What's wrong?" she asked scared.

"It's Willow...she's awake," he announced before setting off back out the library and through the old closed door.


	8. Episode 8: Uninvited Guests

(Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse. I am just a **devoted** fan!)

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 7  
Uninvited Guests

[-] Chapter 1

Buffy remained in the library chair as Xander sped off at breakneck speed back in the direction he had just come. He expected her to use every ounce of her Slayer speed to get from the library to Willow's' room, but was shocked as he didn't see nor hear her pass him anywhere. Instead she kept her gaze at the libraries, now swinging violently, doors. Her mind was overpowered by the voice in her head that told her to get up but she couldn't make her legs, arms, chest or head move at all. Giles didn't wait a moment longer and ran out the library leaving his cup of tea perched on top of _A Watchers Guide to a Succubus' seduction._ Her mind wouldn't allow her to concentrate on one single thought and so she was left in the dull buzz of her own subconscious.  
She was numb.  
"She's awake," Buffy mimed without realising. Her gaze dropped from the doors and into her own lap. Buffy worried that the Willow she knew, the girl who packed her own lunches, wore weird shirts and kissed girls would not be waiting for her when she got to her room. She feared this more than any demon she would ever find in any graveyard...but she knew she had to see if her best friend was still in that shell somewhere. She found the power to shakily get up from the library chair and put one foot in front of the other. Slowly and steadily Buffy made her way across the ocean of books that dominated the library floor and into the main hall. The usual clang of pots and pans from behind the closed door because of Andrew's cooking was just a low buzz, the T.V's were off and not a soul was in sight. The manor was also colder than Buffy remembered it, freezing even. Buffy put that down to the fact that she felt like she was going to pass out with the worry. Of course she'd try to hide her worry to anybody who innocently passed by...but not a soul was found on the first floor, and the second floor or the third floor. _Where is everybody? _She thought. As she began ascending the staircase onto the fourth floor where Willow and Kennedy chose their room she could hear in-coherent whispering. She got to the fourth floor and took a deep breath to ready herself. _Of course, they're girls, they feed on gossip and Willow I guess is the big news around here _she thought as she turned the corner into the long corridor of rooms, bathrooms and the balcony at the end.  
Girls lined up in small and large groups outside the room each with their mouths in another's ears. Buffy tried to open her mouth to speak, told her mind to make her voice the tone of a leaders and told her body to make itself appear strong...but instead her voice decided to come out like a baby's sigh, her mouth quivered and her body felt like an ice pool in a cave. Even though her voice was low, those Slayer ears of theirs picked up on the sound and the corridor fell silent...**all eyes on the blonde woman wearing somebody else's jeans.** The girls hadn't seen Buffy for days, and on that Saturday night they looked at her like an intruder, some girls sniggered at Buffy's attempt at controlling them, some waited for the leader she made them see while others continued to whisper in their friends' ears.

Dawn had heard the news too. She popped her head around her door at the sound of Xanders boots colliding with the rug that spread across the corridor.  
Since the watchers council made their announcement that they were rebuilding but this manor had to play ground zero to the slayers for a week or two Dawn was forced to give up her room and move in with her sister on the third floor. After slapping Buffy in the library she left quickly and headed to her sisters room. She realised the slap wasn't such a good idea now that they were going to sleep in the same bed for a while.  
When Dawn realised she wasn't the only girl with her body hidden behind a door she pulled her brunette haired head back around the door and sat on the bed. She resisted the urge to look back out into the corridor when she heard more footsteps flying down the corridor. _Buffy being back can't be that exciting can it?_ Dawn thought. After all the footsteps had stopped Dawn gave into the temptation of joining the fray of girls upstairs when she too noticed the Manors drop in temperature, she assumed somebody had left the windows that faced the cliff side open and passed it off as an innocent annoyance. She stepped out into the corridor but hid behind the frame at the sight of her sister heading up the stairs after the girls.  
Dawn saw the vulnerability in her sister's walk and so quietly followed behind her. She stopped abruptly at the sound of a door slamming to her south. It appeared that Alicia had paired up with Kate in Kate's room on the second floor near Buffy's and they too were going to see what all the fuss was about. "Kate, right?" Dawn asked as the two girls over took her in the hallway.

"Yeah," Kate said as she stopped and turned to face Dawn.

"What's with the stampede?" Dawn asked.

"That witch chick that went with your sister? Some Puerto Rican girl mentioned something about her being awake," Kate said.

"Willow. When Buffy brought me here she was in a coma, now I guess she woke up?" Alicia added.

"A coma!" Dawn asked wide-eyed. The two girls shrugged before Dawn set off at incredible speed in the direction of her sister with the two slayers following behind her. Dawn caught up to her sister just as Buffy was about to tell the girls to go back to bed. She watched from around the corner as the girls rudely responded to her. _We can argue later_ Dawn thought as she stepped out from behind her sister.

"Anybody who doesn't know ' the red-head-witch-chick's ' middle name better get the hell away from that door and back to their rooms or ill cut off the hot water supply to each and every bathroom in this place for month!" Dawn asserted loudly grabbing the attention of every bystander in the hallway. The girls exhaled heavily and, as though they had weights tied to their shoulders, left the corridor into the direction of the most convenient staircase. Buffy turned to her taller and younger sister and smiled at the woman she was becoming. Dawn wouldn't make eye contact and instead exchanged looks with the other five people that remained in the hallway.  
Giles, Xander, Faith, Wood and Andrew.  
Dawn shot Andrew a look.

"What!" he said in reply, "I wanna be included, all you guys let me do around here is make waffles and wash your dishes," he sighed. Dawn spotted Faith roll her eyes behind Giles. Buffy kept her gaze on her sister.

"You know you can't actually turn off the hot water supply," Buffy said with a smile in an attempt to get her sister to make eye contact.

"Yeah well it got them to move didn't it?" Dawn said icily with her eyes facing a direction that was not her sisters. Dawn walked towards the door and knocked but got no reply.

"We tried that, Kennedy says Willow insisted on getting cleaned up and she'll come get us when she's ready," Xander added. Dawn made no response to this and instead got within ankle to torso distance. "Dawnie what're you doing? You can't just break the door down," Xander advised.

"I've got three-inch designer heels on that say otherwise," Dawn said. Dawn leaned back and began to raise her foot at the door. Her heels collided with the door but instead it was Dawn who was knocked back instead of the wood she had just collided with. Dawn was sent on her backside with her brown her covering her face.

"Okay, enough with the _Charlie's Angels _act _Cameron Díaz_," Faith said as she walked in front of Dawn and knocked on the door too. "Hey, Ken. Open up!"  
Immediately the golden door knob twirled to the right and Kennedy's head peered around the door.

"Alright alright, now need for the property damage Faith," Kennedy scolded.

"Blame the kid," Faith said as she rudely passed Kennedy and into Willow's room. Buffy decided she would have the hard heart to heart with Dawn later on now that they were sharing a room and so followed Faith into Willow's room leaving Dawn with her butt on the floor rug. Xander offered to help her up but Dawn shrugged him off and they two entered the room with everyone else until it was only Andrew outside. He was about to follow into the room too when Xander shut the door right in his face. Andrew sighed to himself as his nose was within millimetres of the door.

"Right...I guess I'll just...go make...something," he said as he turned from the door and continued down the corridor.  
Buffy placed herself near the bedside-table lamp whilst everyone else spread out around the room.

"She's in the shower," Kennedy announced timidly in response the expression on Buffy's face and the faces of everyone else in the room.

Xander began, "Is she-"

"She hasn't said much...but she's Willow," Kennedy replied. Buffy let out a sigh of relief, but she would only be completely convinced when she had a moment alone with her best friend. Nobody even noticed the noisy shower until Kennedy brought their attention to it. The atmosphere was almost as cold as the temperature in the manor. With Kennedy sat on top of the bed looking everyone in the eye and praying for them to look back but instead everybody contemplated the shade of brown that covered the wooden floor boards underneath their shoes.  
The squeak of the shower tap and the drowning sound of the last drops of water crashing against the tiled floor caught the attention of everyone in the small bedroom. The door to the bathroom opened and a streak of light spread across the wooden floor of the main room. A red-headed woman in a white and fuzzy bath gown stepped into the room.

"Greeaaaaatt...everybody's here to see me," Willow said with a false but convincing smile. "But It's kinda' late so if you guys wanna come back in the morning?"

"Will...how are you? How're you feelin'?" Xander asked.

"You just asked the same question twice," Willow replied.

"You just tried to change the subject," Xander countered. Willow sighed and sat on the left side of the bed near Buffy and Faith. Xander and Dawn sat at the foot of the bed; Kennedy sat on the right side of the bed near Willow while Robin and Giles paced around the room.

"Look, guys...I'm awake...I'm fine, can't we just leave it at that? Willow said with the same false smile.

"Will, you were kidnapped by gods, stripped of your memory and sent into a supernatural coma...it's safe to say you've got some explaining to do," Buffy said. The next few moments were a blur for Willow, everybody through their questions at her like she was a criminal at the FBI. It was impossible for her to pick one to answer out of the abyss.

"Shut up!" she shouted with her head bowed and her hands around her ears. She began rocking forward and back. Buffy should have known better, she knew from experience that when going through something like a supernatural coma or y'know...being dead...the last thing you want is to be interrogated. At least Buffy was offered pizza.

A few minutes later Kennedy began, "I think Willow needs her rest, if you guys could-"

"Actually" Willow said interrupting her, "If I could have a few minutes with Xander and Buffy..." Kennedy looked at her scrutinizingly, as if to ask _why not me?_  
But what her Willow wanted, her Willow got.  
Faith, Robin, Kennedy, Dawn and Giles began leaving the room in a clean single file. Faith was last out and was about to shut the door behind her when,

"Faith!" Willow said loudly. Faith just turned her head to look at Willow and remained silent. "Could you..." Willow finished the rest of her sentence with a hand gesture.

"I'll uh...see you upstairs then," Robin said. Faith nodded and paced back into Willow's room.

After a few moments Faith opened her mouth to speak, "Can't say I get it red I mean I ain't one of the four founding scoobies."

"I just think you should hear it from instead of somebody else," Willow replied.

"Well, hear what?" she asked.

"Will start from the beginning, what happened back at Sunnydale?" Buffy asked.

Willow began, "Well I got there and I was ready to do my spell when-" Willow abruptly stopped talking when she noticed the expression on Buffy's and Xander's face. She'd forgotten that they didn't know who she planned to bring back and although Willow planned to avoid the question she'd basically just walked up to the door and knocked. But nobody asked, they all knew _why_ she'd stopped but neither could gather up the courage to ask. She took this to mean that they didn't want to know and so carried on with her tale. "...when I was taken to the white room by Hecate and Osiris. They told me it was purgatory...I don't know why, maybe to scare me or something? I don't know. They said I'd done something and that I had to be shown."

"Shown like a cool slide show?" Xander added with a smile.

"More like a cab journey through time," Willow replied knocking Xanders smile away. "To cut a story short I met my grandmother, learned my magic is rooted to the demon Alvoki and I fought a Turok-Han."

"You what? Will, are you okay?" Buffy asked frantically.

"I'm fine, I was pulled out just in time,"

"Pulled out?"

"Back to the white room. But there's something you guys should know," she announced. The room fell silent. "Back when I was with my grandmother...in her coven there was a seer, prophesier whatever you wanna call it. S-she saw something in me, something I thought I'd beaten a long time ago but apparently its right at the surface. S-s-she said that it's gunna happen again...soon."

"What's going to happen again?" Faith asked confused. Faith guessed it was something bad from the expression on everybody's face in the room. "Oh...big bad Willow? Gotta say I was kinda down I didn't get to see that, something I'd almost like to see-"

"No you wouldn't," Xander and Buffy said in unison with their eyes on the floor.

"Said _almost_," Faith replied. The room was quiet for a while, the coldness of the manor seemed to freeze over every pour in Buffy's cheeks and her fingers felt like they had been jabbed with anaesthetic.

"We won't let that happen again, I promise you," Buffy said taking Willow's hands in hers.

"You don't get it," Willow said violently taking her hands back, "I saw it Buffy. I mean I watched as I through you off the first floor landing and down into the main hall. **I killed you**," Willow said with a single streaming tear.

"Now you listen to me," Xander announced. "I **will not** let that happen. I saved you once and I'll do it a thousand times more. So what's just one more time?" He argued. Moments passed where three of the four original scoobies shared a beautiful moment...that made Faith want to barf.

"It's a good story red, but I don't see what it's got to do with me?" Faith asked.

"I was told that my friends would turn on me, when I needed them that Xander wouldn't be around, Buffy would save Dawn and that you would leave altogether," Willow replied. "Obviously I didn't believe them and so they showed something from your past..." Faith knew exactly what Willow was talking about. She'd still to that day wake up in a cold sweat from a nightmare of Kakistos and her first watcher. "I saw what he did to her Faith, what you had to go through-"

"Stop," Faith whispered. Willows mouth zipped shut. Faith shook her head from side to side before bolting from the room.  
Confusion could have been written across the foreheads of Buffy and Xander. They looked at Willow for some explanation but Willow thought it best to say nothing.

Meanwhile downstairs in the kitchen behind the ancient closed door Andrew was making the usual feast for the hundred plus girls that now lived in the manor. Some of them were on patrol with Vi while others rested in bed for the new 'daylight patrol' scheme around town for those 'new special monster things' as Andrew thought of them. "Andrew's just the cook, well I could be more than a cook...I was evil, not just like Rosenberg or The First evil but like...Lex Luther evil," Andrew mumbled as he topped the syrup onto his signature pancakes. Andrew stopped whisking his pancake mixture when he smelled a strong stench of burning wood and smoke. He put the huge bowl down on the counter and headed towards the stove to look for the fire.

"Argh!" he exclaimed at the small pale little boy in a plaid uniform with a black cap hat and shorts stood in front of the stove. "What the hell man! You scared the bejeezes outa me! It's about time we got us a guy slayer though-"

"**Get out!**" the boy exclaimed in a demonically deep voice. Andrew fell back with shock and knocked right into the emergency fire evacuation alarm. Water splattered everywhere from the metal fire taps on the ceiling. Screaming girls echoed throughout the manor.  
Andrew looked back to the spot where the boy stood but all that was left in that spot was a small pile of yellow powder.

[-] Chapter 2

A Plague of cold water was unleashed onto the manor. The carpeted hallways became waterlogged and soggy, the lounge areas' wallpaper ripped and drooped, the ever burning entrance hall fireplace fire was extinguished, bed sheets, towels, kitchen appliances, books...all simply destroyed and pouring. Then what came next was something the girls wished was a demon. A deafeningly strong and stunning screech echoed throughout the manor from one single speaker on the entrance hall ceiling. It clawed its way into every working ear in the manor and sent one single message to every working brain.

'Get out.'

Only Andrew himself and what Andrew believed was either a ghost or the result of too many hours of _World of Warcraft_ knew that their actually wasn't any fire to speak of.  
Just a clumsy accident.  
He squabbled to his feet, putting his hand in the yellow powder to help himself up. Pain coursed through his ankle as he got up, he'd felt it once before after an obese boy pushed him down in the 3rd grade. It felt like a sprain. Nevertheless he awkwardly got himself out of the kitchen and into the corridor behind the old closed door.

Buffy, Xander and Willow were still sitting in Willow's room when they were attacked with water. The girl's hair and even Xander's was wet through in no time. Xander began, "what the-"

"Fire," Buffy informed in a hard tone. Then came the Banshee's screech. Three of the four original scoobies placed their hands over their ears in a desperate attempt to drown the noise out.

"I don't smell smoke!" Xander cried over the alarm.

"I'm guessing that's because we're four floors up Xand," Buffy replied loudly. Xander scoffed.

"Never a dull moment huh?" Willow smiled through her wet strings of red hair. "I'm still kinda' weak...but I can make it," Willow struggled to say as she tossed the blankets off of her. Buffy immediately went to grab Willow into her arms to carry her out of the manor but Xander quickly bolted in front of her.

"I got her, go get Dawn. We'll meet you out front!" he shouted. Buffy nodded.

Buffy fled the room so quickly she seemed like a blur. As she entered the hallway she felt like she'd interrupted and angry stampede. Maybe eighteen girls ran down the hall screaming and adding to the scream of the alarm. When they spotted Buffy they slowed down and waited for her instructions. "**Careful on your way down. Make your way to the iron gates out front. Go, now!**" she instructed. The girls picked up their primal pace and headed for the stairway. Buffy grabbed the last girl by the arm. "Where's Dawn?" she asked.

"No sé lo que estás diciendo!" the girl replied. Buffy just smiled and released the girl who then followed the others downstairs. Buffy and Dawn's room was downstairs on the third floor now that the other slayers occupied Dawn's old room on the fifth floor. Buffy passed the girls on the stairway and headed to her room.

Buffy had known Dawn all her life –technically three years- but by now she knew her younger sibling pretty well. In case of a fire there was one thing she knew her sister would save above anything else. Before Joyce Summers, Buffy and Dawn's Mom passed away Joyce and Dawn took part in a book club, with just two members. When the tumour was found and with Joyce's schedule, the hospital and her medication she simply had no time anymore.

They never finished that last book.

_Through the looking glass by Lewis Carroll. _They managed to get just before that halfway chapter before Joyce was diagnosed with the tumour. Every night Dawn reads that chapter of the book, reliving how it felt to read with her mother. Remembering the smell of her perfume and the shampoo her mom used. For about an hour every night Dawn got to feel fourteen again and still living in 1623 Revelow Drive, Sunnydale, California.  
Buffy was frozen in her tracks at the memory of her mother (and also kinda' frozen from the water.) Even with the chaos around her she suddenly felt...at peace. The drops of ice water felt warm and welcoming. But Buffy tried never to be greedy. She allowed her peaceful mirage to fade and the water stung once again. She headed for the bedside-table where she suspected Dawn had placed some of her things when she took over Buffy's room while she was in L.A. She slid the solid and soaking wooden draw open and found a few pyjama's still relatively dry, Dawn's laptop and a bag of change.

No book. Dawn was safe.

Buffy left the room at break-neck speed and headed downstairs, into the main hallway and slipping on the wet wooden floor and out into the front yard.  
It looked like the class of Sunnydale High 1999 was standing on the front lawn after having a pool party/pyjama party. A Fire truck was parked just in front of the rusted Iron gates and the siren lights flashed. Girls were huddled together in warm blankets and Giles was standing in his black dressing gown and green and grey plaid pyjama pants. The Manor was bathed in flashing red light. Buffy examined the scene. Faith was amongst the crowd along with Nicholas, Willow and Xander who were standing side by side talking to a member of the fire brigade, Andrew was sitting alone on a dead patch of grass clutching at the joint between his foot and leg and Dawn was huddled in a dark blanket next to Giles's car clutching a wet copy of _Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll_. Buffy descended the few stairs separating the Manor's porch from the ground.

The chief fireman was speaking to Giles in hushed tones next to a small shrub by the wall. "Well with your permission Mr. Giles, my team and I would like to search the Manor for any faulty wiring or something else that may have caused the alarm to go off in your..."

"Boarding School," Buffy added, "His uh Boarding school. Hi I'm Miss **-Mrs- **Summers." Buffy said in a false tone of sophistication while shaking the gentlemen's hand.**  
**Buffy released the gentleman's hand after she spotted him wincing and realised she was clutching at his wrist and shaking it vigorously. She told the man a pack of lies like how she was Deputy Head Master who teaches English to which Giles gave her a surveying look as if to mock Buffy's intelligence. Shortly afterwards a group of fireman searched the manor for signs of a fire.  
Everybody waited on the front Lawn for the firemen to exit the house again. 1,000,000 thoughts went through the mind of everyone standing on that section of gravel, grass and earth.

'I wonder who started the Fire?'  
'Gee, where do you think it is?'  
'My god I'm hungry!'  
'Je ne sais toujours pas ce qui se passe!'

Buffy too experienced these thoughts as she watched Dawn in the centre of the crowd clutching at her beloved children's novel.  
It was as Buffy scanned the crowd she noticed her. Standing alone. On the furthest corner of the gathering. Since Buffy returned to Cleveland she hadn't seen her but in all honesty, she wasn't looking for her.  
Rona. She was wearing a pair of aged denim overalls and a slightly off-coloured white t-shirt. Her hands drooped by her sides in complete stillness, considering how soaking wet everybody was, it made Buffy's eyebrows furrow. Rona's feet were bare and bathed in mud from the waterlogged grass. Her hair was life-less and tattered which mirrored the look in her eyes. They stayed engaged on the floor but Buffy could see them quiver like she was reliving something unnerving. Her mouth lay parted like she was trapped in a breath.  
Buffy suddenly felt her eyes quiver to and she was trapped within a memory.

_"Rona, what's wrong, what happened, where are the girls? Buffy asked sleepily. Rona just looked at Buffy, the fear in her eyes and the guilt was the only thing Buffy needed to know what happened. Faith saw it too._

_"How many?" Faith asked._

_"Ni-nin-nine of, of us, t-twenty five of the-them. Maybe more." Rona stuttered. Willow took her blanket off of her and wrapped it around Amalia. Buffy dragged Rona over to the sofa and sat her down. Everybody else either took a vacant seat or crowded around. Faith sat next Rona on the sofa while Buffy sat on the other side, Willow sat with Amalia and Giles sat next to them. Andrew perched himself on the coffee table and everybody else crowded around._

_"What happened Rona, I mean when I left you and Vi in the field everything seemed fine. Did something? Is the first back?" Faith asked worried._

_"No, the first is gone, well he wasn't there anyway..." Rona began. She told the story from were Vi had called and said she was going home. She informed Buffy about the man and how that the killing of the seven Slayers was a message for her and how he referred to her as __**the **__slayer. After she finished the room fell silent, almost as though an invisible force kept their lips together. Giles broke the silence,_

_"Yes, well, I, um" Buffy cut him off before he could form his sentence._

_"You let them go off alone?" she said angrily._

_"I-I-I-I-I-I-I thought that" Buffy cut her off just like she did Giles._

_"No Rona you didn't think, and it's cost seven innocent girls their lives!" she exclaimed._

_"Chill it B!" Faith said shocked at how angry Buffy was. Rona's tears began to well up in her eyes. Buffy ignored Faith's comment._

_"Get upstairs." Buffy ordered Rona._

_"Buffy I"-_

_"Now, Rona!"_

Buffy came back to reality. That was the last thing she'd said to Rona before Leaving for Sunnydale to find Willow after Rona first encountered this mystery Vampire king man. Buffy caught Faith's eye and signalled her over. Buffy began and with a nod in Rona's direction she said, "is she-"

"Is she what B? After what you said to her it's a wonder she hasn't fell apart by now," Faith replied cutting Buffy off mid-sentence.

"Faith, she got seven girls killed," Buffy argued.

"No B, she made a tragic mistake all be it a big one but haven't we all, sometimes I think you're to on your high horse to see that we're all just people," Faith retaliated.

"How dare you," Buffy said with a sting in her fists.

"How dare I? How dare you! Not so long ago it was me that got a couple girls killed and what I got is roll in the sack with Robin and pizza served at my beckoned call," Faith replied.

"I don't want to hear this," Buffy said and made a break away from Faith. Faith grabbed Buffy by the arm and pulled her back.

"Yeah well maybe y'don't want to hear this but 'chu need to. The girl's barely left her room for the last three days, she won't train, won't patrol and barely even eats!" she said. Faith saw Buffy's eyes drop to her shoes. Faith loosed her grip around Buffy's forearm. "B, I think you two need a serious female bonding moment so you can _both_ move on. We buried the girl's bodies in the back yard while you were away and people have moved on. You're anger is the only thing keeping Rona and yourself from doing the same." Faith decided to leave Buffy with that. She completely released Buffy's arm and turned to return to Robin in the crowd.

Buffy decided Faith was right, Buffy realised she did sometimes act like she was the superior being, the leader, the one everyone looked to. But only because her friends had made her that way. She'd kept them safe for _seven_ years doing exactly that.  
But not anymore.  
She wasn't the only Slayer anymore.  
She was _a_ Slayer for the longest that's for sure.  
But she was one of many now.  
Buffy let out a sigh of relaxation, she felt good about thinking she could take a step back, but she also knew she'd had the same thought before and it didn't last very long. It was just a matter of time before the relaxation period left her again. But for now it was with her and she made her way over to Rona, stride by stride through the crowd.

"False Alarm!" cried the chief fireman. Buffy stopped dead and turned to the African American gentlemen she'd met earlier. "You can all go back inside now, watch your step...it's still slippery." Dawn, Rona and the rest of the girl's hoarded back into the manor and left Faith, Robin, Giles, Xander, Willow, Kennedy, Nicholas, Buffy and a whimpering Andrew still outside. They huddled around the chief fireman as the rest of the fire crew got back into the fire truck and waited. "Looks like somebody knocked one of the emergency alarms," the chief said addressing the crowd.

"Where?" Giles pondered.

"Kitchen...any ideas?" the chief replied.

"Three guesses who," Xander said. Every head turned to face Andrew who was sitting on the ground still clutching his ankle. He refused to meet the gaze of his fellow housemates.

"Andrew, did you have something to do with this?" Buffy asked with a glare but she received no reply or eye contact. "Andrew!" she repeated loudly.

"Alright!" he replied turning to his onlookers. "But it wasn't my fault," he said in a quieter tone.

"Just how is you pressing the kitchen alarm not your fault?" Xander asked in a mocking tone.

"You guys kicked me out so I bailed to the kitchen when I smelled smoke, I go to the stove and BAM, scary ghost kid," he argued with vigorous hand gestures. Everybody looked at Andrew and he quickly realised he was in the presence of a normal everyday person and crying '_ghost kid' _would get him locked up in the chief's reality.

The chief began, "did he just say-"

"It's the stress of cooking for over two-hundred girls day after day," Robin said in an attempt to save the situation.

"... in the future you folks be more careful you hear?" he advised.

"We will officer, sorry to have wasted your time," Giles said as he escorted the chief back to the truck. They watched as the truck pulled out of the iron gates and Giles shut them tight.

"Let me get this straight...you think the mansion's haunted?" Robin asked.

"I guess," Andrew replied.

"I don't have time for this," Buffy said while heading in the direction of the manor.

"Buffy you can't just assume the tweeb is lying," Faith said. Buffy stopped and reluctantly turned to Andrew.

"I can prove it, the spook thing left a weird yellow powder on the floor, I'd bet it's still there!" Andrew persuaded. He tried to get up to lead the cavalry towards the scene of the crime when he fell down again with an aching pain in his ankle.

"Xander help tweedle dumb upstairs to his room, his ankle is pretty banged up, Kennedy get red back in bed and hand out towels warm sheets and whatever else will help get rid of the water damage," Faith ordered. "B, you can-"

"Can't, I have a hormonal and angry teenage sister in my room," Buffy replied.

"And Faith what about day patrol, it'll be daylight soon and the girls who left earlier tonight will be back soon," Kennedy reminded Faith.

"Day patrol goes as planned, I'll take lead and get everybody scheduled dried and rounded up," Faith asserted.

"Hey, I'm up for a little patrol," Robin said with a wink in Faith's direction which she winked back to as a sign of reply.

"B, check out the kid's yellow crack stuff on the kitchen floor on your way up yeah?" Faith asked. Buffy nodded. She realised she'd left the manor and her friends in safe hands when she left for Sunnydale. Faith took the leadership role naturally and it felt easier on Buffy to just have Dawn and the mystery powder as her only priorities for now.

Before heading up the wet stairs Buffy took a detour into the kitchen where she found no powder to speak of.

While Xander and Robin carried Andrew through the threshold of the manor they spotted several girls including Amalia and Kate with mops and towels from the supply closet trying to clear up the water damage in the entrance hall. Xander shot a glance up the main staircase leading to the first floor and spotted Buffy turning the corner and down the hall.  
Through the bright light of the chandelier (which remarkably survived the in-house tsunami) Andrew saw the faint silhouette of a tall boy around 14 years old with sever burn marks all over his face and plaid uniform. "There!" Andrew cried pointing at the spot where the boy stood. Wood stopped instantly and looked at the spot to find nothing.

"Were?" Wood asked.

"He was right there," Andrew said in a defeated tone.

"Don't encourage him," Xander said mockingly.

Buffy reached the third floor. She stared down the long corridor to where her room was located and Dawn was inside. She was actually nervous. Dawn and Buffy had had fights before but not like this. Buffy had left Dawn worried, scared and alone for three days and sent just the one single phone call. There was much begging and grovelling to be had. She knocked on the door and opened it.  
Dawn was clearing the wet bed sheets off of the bed at the time, book still in hand. Buffy raised her hand as a sign of hello. "Hey," she added as she crossed the threshold and closed the door. Dawn looked at her sister, made eye contact but didn't reply. "Can we talk?" Buffy asked.

[-] Chapter 3

Dawn looked to her sister and spotted the sincerity in her eyes. But she was still pissed as hell and wasn't ready to just abandon how she'd been feeling. She thought a shrug might be an appropriate response; short and sweet, not so polite but not to offensive. She hoped. And so as Dawn ripped off the last sheet from Buffy's double bed and threw it into a wash basket in the corner she did the dirty deed.

"A shrug?" Buffy scoffed with a tilted eyebrow.

_"Crap_" Dawn thought. She looked down at the bare mattress. It was a little off-coloured from the water but it was thick enough to suspect that the other side was bone dry. She slid her fingers under the huge mattress and tried to flip it. Alas it was too heavy for non-slayer Dawn Summers.

"Here," Buffy said as she began towards the mattress.

"I got it," Dawn scowled. Buffy ignored this and placed her fingers under the mattress too and between the two of them they flipped it on its side and then down again and to their surprise the bottom side of the mattress had remained dry. The sisters smiled at the mattress and then up at each other. After an awkward moment or two the sisters let their smiles fade. Buffy missed those moments with Dawn, when they forgot that dangerous evil creatures where roaming the city around them and instead flowers where able to grow properly in the cemetery without a Vampire, and more commonly than she would like, Buffy being thrown onto them. Dawn hastily grabbed the wet sheets and said, "I'll uh...just hang these over the radiator." Dawn made a swift brake past Buffy and towards the door to the third floor corridor where the radiator hung by the wall closest to a small bathroom.

"Dawn wait," Buffy asked as she turned to Dawn who had just got her grip around the doorknob.

"Buffy I can't do this right now," Dawn said in the calmest voice she could manage. Dawn elegantly bailed into the corridor where seven girls still in pyjamas were still mopping the wet wooden floor. Dawn hung the sheets over the large radiator and found that it wasn't working. She'd messed with the controls for a second or two when she noticed how cold the manor was. She had labelled the fact that she was chilled to the bone to the fact that she was soaking wet. But when she took the time to check, her hair was only damp and so where her clothes. _What's going on?_ She thought. However she didn't have the time to fully jump onto her train of thought because as she turned around to walk away from the radiator she found an also damp Buffy standing in front of her with her arms folded and shoulders tense.

"Well we're gunna do this now," Buffy said in response to Dawn's last statement. Dawn placed her hands on her hips and let her shoulders tense up too. Suddenly Dawn spotted Buffy's shoulders relax and she watched as Buffy's arms recoiled down to her sides. "What do you want from me Dawn? I know I messed up and I know I made you mad but...I've said I'm sorry," Buffy said.

"You've said sorry. Great. Do you want a reward? Why not a medal to go with it because lest we forget...you're sorry," Dawn spat.

Buffy began, "Dawn,-"

"No Buffy. You don't get to say sorry and expect everything to be okay," Dawn cried. Xander, Willow and Faith where on their way back up to their rooms when they stepped foot on the third floor corridor and heard the commotion. With Willow still wrapped in a towel, Faith in a dark vest top and jeans and Xander in his usual shirt and combats the three made their way down to the echo of voices.

"Guys?" Xander began.

"And I'm not the only one Buffy! Tell her Faith," Dawn said upon the arrival of the three. Faith's eyes widened and for once she was speechless.

"Whoa, hey hold on, just a passerby here," Faith said with her palms raised.

"You abandoned us Buffy. Xander was a wreck, Slayers were pouring in from the corners of the walls, money's been tight, Giles was passing out because he couldn't sleep for fear you were lying dead in a ditch somewhere...**again**," Dawn continued.

"Okay Dawnie I think we all need to take a step back here," Xander interrupted with an arm on Dawn's shoulder.

"Get your hands off of me or I swear I will kill you," Dawn growled at Xander. Xander took a step back and quickly removed his hand. He could have sworn he'd seen the iris of Dawn's eyes turn a shade of yellow.

Faith began, "Kid-"

"No let her finish!" Buffy interrupted loudly. "She clearly isn't finished talking about things that don't concern her!" Buffy exclaimed.

Buffy took a swift step towards Dawn and refolded her arms.  
Dawn did exactly as Buffy did and they were now within nose touching distance.  
Buffy's eyes made the same quick yellow flash as Dawn's did.

The lights in the corridor began to flash quickly. Buffy and Dawn remained completely transfixed upon each other. Willow's head lifted quickly. "Red, what's going on?" Faith asked.

"Are you doing that?" Xander asked.

"No. They are," Willow said with a quick glance at Buffy and Dawn.

"You think you can take me?" Buffy whispered aggressively.

"I know I could reduce you to dust," Dawn growled. Willow then began to watch everything in slow motion. Buffy's shoulder jerked in a way that showed she was about to make her first blow at her sister. Dawn's thigh muscles rippled through her jeans which showed she was about to take a step back so she could get a clean high kick at her sister.

"_**Saypsay Impedimentum!**_" Willow exclaimed. A flashing blue barrier was conjured in the tight space between Dawn and Buffy. The barrier acted as a shield for both girls. When Buffy's fist collided with the barrier it flashed a brighter shade of blue and sent her sprawling off of her feet and she made a heavy collision with the wall behind her. The same happened for Dawn except when the sole of her boot made contact with the barrier it deflected her attack and she was sent into a sort of spinning form until she collided with the wooden floor beneath her. Xander watched as his friends hit the floor and made a dusty yellow handprint on the spot where they had landed in an attempt to cushion their fall.

The girl's eyes flashed that yellow shade once again. Buffy placed her palms on her forehead while Dawn shook her head from side to side.

Buffy began to stutter, "Dawnie- I-I-I-" But before Buffy could finish Dawn had already picked herself up and locked herself in the bathroom with extra force on the slamming of the door.

"Buffy what the hell, you were about to go all Xena on your sister!" Xander said.

"That wasn't me," Buffy murmured. "I mean it _was_ me but, something was controlling me...making me angry. Kinda' like I was taken over by that dead guy ghost back in High School."

"James and Miss Newman," Xander said.

"Exactly," Buffy agreed.

Faith began, "Okay, that was a little before my generation you guys are gunna have to catch me up-"

"_**Reveal**__"_ Willow commanded. Willow's iris became black and cold for a mere moment before returning back to their usual shade of brown. Everybody followed Willow's gaze down the corridor. They ended up with palms over mouths at the small boy, no older the five or six, standing in a plaid uniform and hat with yellow eyes and raw burn marks. Buffy got to her feet. The boy shared the same yellow eyes the group had become all too familiar with.  
With all the commotion every minute another group of girls had entered the hallway of the third floor to bear witness to the conflict that had taken place. By now there were no more than fourteen girls, some properly dressed, others still dripping wet.  
The image of the small boy began to fade from the view of the gathering in the corridor. Willow's eyes turned black again. "_**Wait**_!" she commanded. The small boy became angry that Willow was keeping him there. "We just want to talk," Willow said calmly.

"**No!**" the boy exclaimed. His face became disfigured and his voice was demonically deep. Even the fine hairs on Faith's arms were lifted on end. The boy raised his hand in Willow's direction and she was sent sprawling off of her feat towards the gathering of girls behind her. Xander and Buffy ran to Willow's aid while Faith stayed in eye contact with the small boy. The spot on Faith's back where she had gotten her newest addition to her tattoos began to itch just as the boy began to raise his hand at her. The boy was engulfed in purple light, much like that of the pentagram on the tomb about a week ago, and then he just vanished. All that was left was the same yellow pile of dust like the hand prints on the wall and floor.

Meanwhile Dawn was sat on the lid of the toilet with her head in her hands. She was no longer angry at her sister. She wasn't in the first place but something made her so angry when Buffy walked through those library doors about two hours earlier. The same thing that had happened out in the hall except she was ashamed that she'd allowed what happened in the hallway to escalate. She got up from the toilet and placed both hands sturdily on the sides of the sink. She used her right hand to run the cold water tap. She cupped her hands together under the running water and placed her face within the small pool she'd collected. She grabbed the nearest towel and dried herself. She used the towel to wipe the mist off of the mirror in front of her and then threw it to the ground. She gave a second look to the flowing water as she went to turn off the tap.  
However she didn't get that far.  
Instead of crystal clear water pouring into the sink, thick red liquid pooled around the rim of the plug hole.  
Blood.  
Dawn took a quick step back and glanced up at the mirror. Her reflection was accompanied by that of an aged bald man in a suit. He quite literally had half a face. One side was completely normal while the other was black and charred. Dawn let out a scream. She flung her body at the door but the handle was jammed. She began to panic. Her fists collided with the door in a harmony with her pleas for help. "HELP ME!"

Just as the boy disintegrated Buffy heard loud banging from the bathroom. "Dawn," she said. Buffy heavily kicked her boots at the door and it flung open instantly taking some of the soggy wooden border around it off of the walls with the force of her kick. Dawn fled the bathroom in a blur and wrapped herself around her sister. She began to cry. Buffy put her arms around Dawn.

"I'm so sorry," Dawn managed to say through her sobs.

"Me too," Buffy replied.

After a few minutes Buffy asked Willow to take Dawn back to her room. Xander told the girls to quickly grab dry clothes from their rooms and head to the entrance hall. Buffy asked Faith to find Giles, Nicholas, Robin, Kennedy and Andrew so they could properly get to work on the manors blatant infestation. When Dawn had calmed down Buffy asked her to find Alicia, the newest Slayer, and look after her and that they would all meet up in the entrance hall later. She also asked that Dawn would take a head count of everybody she could find. Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles, Faith, Robin, Kennedy, Andrew and Nicholas gathered in the library. Buffy and Andrew talked about their experiences with the spirits and Buffy reluctantly apologised to Andrew for passing his story off as fiction.

Daylight creaked through the windows of the Manor.

"I took a sample of the yellow icky stuff that keeps being left behind but no dice," Willow said in a disappointed tone.

"It's sulphur," Andrew added.

"Are you sure?" Giles asked. Everybody was dry by now, some people had showered, and others simply put on clean clothes. The gang had cleared the tables in the library as they were full of wrecked and now useless books.

"Uh-huh," Andrew beamed.

"We're going to need a little more than that Andrew," Wood said.

"It's kind of a cliché actually. Some people think ghosts leave behind only ectoplasm but ectoplasm is what makes ghosts visible to the human eye, whereas sulphur is how you know you have a ghost even If you haven't seen it," Faith added. Everybody's head turned to Faith. "What? Am I the only one who's seen the bonus features of Ghostbusters?"

"Yes well seeing as we have nothing else to go on," Giles said with a hand gesture at the wreckage of the library. "What do you suppose we do?" Nobody spoke. Instead everybody but one took their glance from Giles and put it onto the tips of their shoes.

Willow began, "Well I could do a spell-"

"No!" Kennedy argued. "No more spells. Haven't you learned your lesson by now?"

"Do you have any better ideas?" Willow snapped. Kennedy's expression changed. "Besides, my supply closet of books and potion ingredients doesn't have a sprinkler in it. And unless you guys have housed a slayer in it in my...absence-"

"No no. It's still very much...well vacant," Giles added.

"Good I'll start there," Willow replied.

"I'm going with you," Kennedy said in a way that told Willow there was no point in arguing. By the way Willow and Kennedy spoke about the subject of Willow and her magic it was obvious to the group it wasn't the first row they'd had about it.

"What about the girls?" Faith asked. "We can't just leave them here it's too dangerous. You guys were there," Faith said as she pointed to Xander and Willow. "You know how uptight B is and these little phantoms or whatever made _her _almost go all _Rambo_ on the kid. Imagine what they could do to two-hundred+ newbie Slayers. No offense."

"Offense taken," Buffy said. "But Faith's right its way too dangerous for them here."

"But Buff it's not like we have a spare castle down the street," Xander said.

"That's not exactly true," Nicholas said.

"Meaning?" Buffy replied.

_This is so cool_ Andrew thought.

Nicholas began, "Well as your liaison to the Senior Partners I have authorisation-"

"Yada yada yada. Get to the part where you have a second crib like this on hold," Faith said.

"I could take them to the Cleveland branch of Wolfram and Hart," Nicholas said. "It's not the safest place for a Slayer but right now...it's safer than here." Buffy contemplated his proposal. Her last trip to Wolfram and Hart ended with her being beaten up by a bunch of fully grown Kunari Demons. But she had to admit, the Sunnydale crater was safer than the manor at that point.

"I agree," Buffy said. "Go do it now before anything else happens."

Just as Buffy finished her last syllable Dawn flew into the Library. "Y'had to jinx it," Willow said. Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"Dawn what's wrong?" Buffy asked.

"We can't find Rona and Kate's gone," Dawn announced.

"Gone? Like poof?" Xander asked.

"No, gone like dragged through the corridor leading to here but when we followed her into the corridor she was just...gone," Dawn said saddened.

"What about Rona?" Faith asked.

"Nobody can find her," Dawn said worried.

"Faith, Wood, search the manor. Find Kate, break walls, do whatever you have to. Find her," Buffy said. "Xander and Kennedy go with Willow and help her prepare for her spell. Giles you're with me, we'll find Rona."

"What about me?" Dawn asked.

"Dawn I need you and Andrew to go with Nicholas to Wolfram and Hart," Buffy said. She knew Dawn wouldn't be happy about this but after much persuasion Dawn and Andrew obliged. Nicholas pressed a speed dial button on his cell and within minutes cars and Busses were on the front lawn. Within the next half-hour the only people still occupying the manor were Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles, Faith, Robin and Kennedy.  
Faith and Robin began exploring the first floor for evidence of where to find Kate. Willow's store cupboard was next to hers and Kennedy's room on the fourth floor while Buffy and Giles thought they'd start looking for Rona by trying her room on the third floor.

"So you say it was Faith's tattoo that got rid of the boy before?" Giles asked as they slowly walked down the third floor corridor.

"Yep. Right here, we'd all just been knocked on our asses and Faith just somehow made it go...poof. Nicholas seems to think it's the spirits of the kids who died in the manor when it was a boarding school," Buffy explained.

"My assumption exactly and how odd" Giles said. "When this is all taken care of I'd love to further study-"

"**Shushhh!**" Buffy interrupted. "Can you hear that?"

"No."

"I think it's coming from Rona's room."  
Buffy and Giles each placed their ear on the wood of Rona's door. Giles could hear it now. Hushed whispering echoed through the door. Giles gave Buffy a nod which indicated that she should look at the doorknob. It was covered in sulphur. Buffy got herself a firm grip around it and tried her hardest to make it turn. No joy. It was locked by what seemed like a bank vault lock. Buffy shrugged her shoulders at Giles.

"Oh when has a locked door ever stopped you?" he complained with a smile. She smiled too. Buffy took a step back and tried her hardest to kick the door down. Alas, no joy.

"Now what?" Buffy asked. Giles awkwardly moved closer to the door and knocked twice.

"Rona? Are you in there?" he asked.

_You're so British_ Buffy thought. After more attempts at kicking the door down Buffy and Giles decided to search the other floors for any sign of Rona or Kate. Sadly they failed on both accounts and returned to Willow on the fourth floor.  
The closet was just big enough for the six of them to sit in a circle on the floor. Faith and Robin had also had no luck finding either of the girls.  
Willow had arranged a small alter with a single candle on the top. It was surrounded by what smelled like burning sage and car exhausts. Everybody sat around the small alter. Willow passed around six similar yet small candles to that of the one on the altar.

"So Will, what exactly are we doing here?" Xander asked.

"Oh...um well I speak this Latin incantation which should hopefully make the big candle make a cool purple flame, then we're all going to take turns in lighting our own candle from the purple flame. Once we all have our candle lit we concentrate on drawing the unwanted supernatural energy from the area around us, the spooks, and the circle acts as a binding field. Hopefully once we have them trapped we should be able to talk to em' and find out what they want," Willow explained excitedly.

"But red the last time you trapped one of these things with your black eye mojo you were knocked on your ass. What's so different about this time?" Faith wondered.

"I guess we'll just have to hope they're in a better mood," Willow said with her excited tone fading.

"What happens if the circle gets broken?" Wood asked.

"Don't know. Let's not find out," Willow replied. "Everybody ready?"

Willow began her incantation from a book in front of her. The candle let out a purple spark before igniting. "The spell's started, once I light my candle, don't break the circle."

Meanwhile on the floor beneath the group Rona was sitting on her bed with her head buried in her lap and her long hair flowing lazily around her thighs. Sunlight seemed to be repelled by her window even though she didn't have the curtains drawn. Her eyes were wide as they stared at the bed sheets below her. Her room was filled with the spirits of the boys from the old boarding school. They whispered things to her like:  
_it's all your fault.  
You got them Killed.  
They died because of you.  
They'll never forgive you, they hate you too much.  
You're better off dead.  
_Rona could feel the heat of fire and the intensity of the smoke that was produced from it but she knew it was just an illusion. She was frozen in pain and in fear. She couldn't even manage to _think_ to cry for help.

"M-m-maybe I am b-better off dead," Rona stuttered. The boy's smiled slyly.

Back up stairs everybody had their candles lit with a purple flame. Willow chanted quietly to herself before the room suddenly became cold as ice. Everybody's breath could be seen in the air. A wind blew around the room which caused the main candle on the alter to go out.

"Here we go," Willow announced.

[-] Chapter 4

Everybody exchanged a look with each other and then with Willow. Xander wondered whether Willow had done the spell correctly. They had been sitting on the damp carpet of Willow's supply closet for a minute or two and nothing had happened.  
Meanwhile downstairs in Rona's room, the ghosts of the boys were exchanging worried glances at each other. They felt the pull of Willow's spell and had no choice to oblige. Some held on a bit longer than others but in the end the only being left in Rona's room, was Rona. The voices stopped and the quietness set in. She was too afraid to lift her head for fear that the silence was some sort of trickery. But she was a Slayer. And Slayer meant bravery in the face of danger. Looking up was easier than she'd expected it to be. She felt more at ease. Still completely terrified, but in a relaxed kind of way. She made a break for the door.  
At the same time upstairs the gang was still sitting in a circle holding their candles carefully in case the same rush of wind came blowing through the small room again. "I don't get it," Willow announced, "I did everything right." Before anybody could reply a shimmering solid silver ring erected around the circle of friends, it blurred the vision of everybody present and wind blew into everybody's ears and echoed loudly. So loudly that it seemed you had to shout to hear your own voice.

"Willow?" Giles asked loudly and worriedly.

"Where shifting," Willow answered.

"We're whating?" Xander shouted over the wind.

"Everybody relax, this is what's supposed to happen. The spirits are pulling us into their plane of existence. As long as the circle stays intact we're safe," Willow exclaimed as her hair flowed freely around her face.

"Easy for you to say," Faith mumbled. After a few more moments of the deafening wind the group found themselves sitting on the old wooden floor of a classroom. A very old classroom that was burnt and decaying faster than a cremating corpse.

"Where are we?" Buffy asked as she looked around.

"It's the school right? The boarding school only...extra crispy," Faith replied. Before anybody could say anything else a group of boys, no younger than eleven and no older than fourteen gathered behind Buffy, Willow, Xander, Kennedy, Giles, Faith and Robin. Each boy with his own unique wound or scar. They stood glaring at our heroes with desperation of longing.

"What now?" Buffy whispered now that the wind had stopped.

"Why are you here?" Willow asked the spirits.

"They're here for Andrews cooking; why d'you think they're here?" Faith said sarcastically. "Listen what's it gonna' take to get you to clear out you supernatural asses out this house?"

"Faith!" Giles warned. "What is it that you hope to gain from being here?" Giles asked the ghosts. A small convergence seemed to occur between the group of boys.

"We were here. We are here. We will always be here," the spirits hummed together.

"If you've always been here, then why show yourselves now?" Willow queried.

"What's changed?" Robin added. The sound of Robins voice seemed to send the ghosts into a rage. Their faces became distorted and they spoke in demonic tongues that sent Giles' head spinning as he attempted to translate. "What I do?" Robin asked in a panic.

"Giles?" Buffy asked.

Giles began, "uhh, it seems the boys blame their teacher for the fire. And I'm afraid Wood was-"

"A teacher," Faith announced. "We're stopping this now. Red? Get us outa' here!"

"Wait!" Kennedy exclaimed. "You took something from us!" Kennedy exclaimed again this time at the spirits. The ghosts continued to speak in demonic tongues and ignored Kennedy. "Give us back Kate and Rona!" The mention of Rona's name caught the attention of the boys.

"She is ours now," a boy of thirteen announced.

"Like hell!" Kennedy replied.

"Hold on," Giles said. That's it isn't it. That's what's different now." Giles spotted the confusion on his colleagues' faces. "Rona, her pain, h-her suffering. Its fuelling them. Her pain is their power. They feed from it," Giles said. "Kate too for some reason. Maybe she's masking _her_ pain."

"Aw man, we need to find them," Xander announced.

"**NO!**" the spectrums cried simultaneously. The solid silver circle around the group began getting smaller and smaller and panic spread across the faces of the group. As the boundary line got closer and closer a strange purple light emanated from Faith's back. It bushed Willow's feeble barrier back and dispelled the spirits.

"Will, what're you doing?" Buffy cried.

"It's not me," Willow replied.  
It was like, if you blinked, you missed it. She was gone so fast. Faith was caught in a swirl of electric pink light and the next thing anybody knew, she was gone. They watched as her candle collided with the burnt brown ash wooden floor and distinguished itself.

The circle was broken.

The spirits charged for the remaining six. Everybody's reaction was different. But their escape was the same. They saw the spirits fade away and fell into a blinding white trance. Buffy was terrified she was being pulled back into the white room but instead she found herself face down in a small pool of water on the entrance hall floor. "What the?-" she began but before she could finish she spotted a boy, older than the ones she'd seen before standing in front of the old closed door. His burns where the worst she'd seen and he gave her a devilish smirk. Buffy began to pick herself up when she spotted the boys line of vision change to the chandelier directly above her. She heard the screws come lose and watched in slow motion as the golden chain snapped and the golden iron death-trap came tumbling down towards her. She bolted out the way and crashed into a mop and broom just in time. The boys smile dwindled and he raised his hand towards the sofa in the corner. It lifted into the air and came hurtling in Buffy's direction. She darted for the grand staircase and heard the sofa crash into the dining room table. It didn't take a genius to work out that the ghost were now permanently on this plane because the circle was broken back on their plane. She pleaded with god that it wasn't just her that saw the white light and that her friends were together and safe somewhere else within the manor. But she didn't have time to search for them. She also pleaded that the ghost's may still have some connection to Rona. And so that's where she headed. She blurred up the staircases to the third floor as more and more spirits tried to block her path with hellish illusions and flying objects. A candle holder had unfortunately caught Buffy in the forehead as a ghost magically plucked it from its holder on the wall and flung it at her. Her forehead was bleeding openly and the pain was intense even for a Slayer.

Buffy reached the third floor and gazed down the corridor. She'd hoped to find that maybe Faith had beaten her to the punch and was saving Rona and Kate while she was off evading the supernatural murder attempts of 1800's school boys. Unfortunately she found no Faith, no gang but was she did find was a struggling Rona on her back being dragged down the hallway. Buffy ran as fast as her legs would carry her. The lights on the ceiling and walls where exploding violently as Buffy passed them, her blonde hair flickering like fire behind her.

Meanwhile, Robin Wood was waking up after the spell in the garage that housed Nicholas' and Giles' cars. The room was bone dry and cardboard crates that contained rubber hoses to emergency plumbing tools stood on shelves nailed to the walls. Robin took a look around the garage and found the exit which lead to the kitchen. In his last glance back at the room he spotted a long black haired figure lying face down on the concrete floor. "Kate," Robin hissed. He rushed to her side put her onto her back while holding her head. He seemed to have startled her awake and her green eyes shimmered in the light of the single bulb hanging from the ceiling. "You're okay, you're okay!" Robin announced as Kate began to struggle. She settled down and they both got to their feet.

"Thanks for y'know, finding me," Kate acknowledged.

"Hey no worries. So what happened to you anyway?" Robin asked.

"It's all kinda' fuzzy really. At least it's over now,"

"Ah well, that remains to be seen, we all got separated after one of Willow's spells went wrong.,"

"How wrong?"

"Wrong in the sense that Faith is missing and the ghosts are probably a lot stronger now."

"Oh goodie. We should probably go find the others right?"

"That was next on the agenda," Robin said. Kate and Wood headed for the door when it flung open and hit the wall behind it causing a huge white rubber pipe to fall from one of the boxes on the walls. A yellow dusty wind entered the room and began swirling around Kate. Wood tried to protect her but the wind just went through him and into her. He nervously and cautiously turned around to find Kate's usually leafy green eyes to have a murky yellow tint. Kate's hand became a fist, her fist raised to the height of Robin's jaw and she sent him hurtling into a shelved wall. He hit the ground with a loud thud before falling unconscious. The yellow tint left Kate's eyes and entered Wood. His body seemed to reactivate. Kate fell to the ground and completely petrified she staggered under a desk and watched as yellow-eyed Robin found Nicholas's keys and turned the ignition in his car. Black smut shot out the back pipe of the shiny, slick car. Wood fumbled around the floor and picked up the large rubber white pipe that lay next to the desk where a cowering Kate took refuge. A possessed Wood gave an evil wink to Kate. She couldn't find the energy to respond, or even move. Wood put one end of the white rubber pipe around the back car exhaust pipe. He then wound down the driver's seat window and placed the other end of the pipe through that.  
Black smoke filled the car.  
Wood gave another look to Kate but found her passed out under the desk. He climbed into the car, slammed the door shut and locked it. He then tossed the keys out of the window and...waited.

At the same time on the third floor. Buffy had dodged the glass that shot out from the exploding light bulbs and dived to grab Rona's hand. Surprised, Buffy got dragged down the corridor with her. Buffy couldn't see the boys who were dragging Rona but from the expression on Rona's face, the parts of it that could be seen through her messy black hair, she defiantly could. "**Rona I need you to listen to me**," Buffy said loudly over Rona's screaming.

"_**Buffy! Help me!**_" Rona cried.

"I'm trying but you have to listen to me!" Buffy replied. The ghosts dragging Rona became visible to Buffy. The corridor was full of them and they were all muttering the same thing.  
_It's all your fault.  
You got them Killed.  
They died because of you.  
They'll never forgive you, they hate you too much.  
You're better off dead.  
_  
The ghosts stopped pulling Buffy and Rona.__

"I-I'm b-better off dead," Rona echoed.

"No Rona you have to ignore it. These ghosts, they're nothing. You're a Slayer, you've saved the world once and you're gonna let this beat you? Fight this!"

"B-Buffy?" Rona stuttered.

"I forgive you!" Buffy said loudly.

The spirits throughout the manor where frozen in their attacks on Buffy's friends. They didn't simply disappear however. They were trapped in a ferocious ring of fire before evaporating completely. The damage left by the spirits repaired itself. Light bulbs collected their shards of glass, ripped wallpaper mended itself, the chandelier attached itself to its golden chain and hung from the ceiling once more. Broken sofa's and smashed picture frames all repaired.

"What?" Rona asked with a trickling tear down her cheek.

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you," Buffy replied. "I think 'I forgive you' is what you needed to hear to beat those stupid evil ghost things."

"Yeahh, I-I-I guess so."

"Lets find the others," Buffy said as she got up and offered Rona her hand. Rona took it gladly and followed Buffy back down the hallway.

Down in the garage Kate was still passed out on the floor and Wood began to take back control of his body. He found himself amongst a black cloud of death and dust. He began to panic when he realised what was happening. He pushed as hard as he could to get the car door open but he just didn't have it in him, the keys to the car could be seen though the small gap in the window that the pipe was coming in through. He pushed on the pipe to try and get it out of the window but it was wedged in to tight. He tried to open his mouth to scream for help but the black mist rushed into every open space within the vehicle.  
There was nothing he could do.

Buffy and Rona found Xander, Willow, Kennedy and Giles on the second floor corridor. They had a few nicks and scrapes of their own but nothing too major. Giles was concerned about the gash on Buffy's head but she assured him she'd be fine. The topic of conversation for the group was Willow's spell. "I'm just glad our uninvited guests have now realised how rude it is to overstay their welcome, Giles said.

They reached the first floor landing that looked over the entrance hall when Xander said, "yeah Will, unfortunately I didn't have a chance to ask you this while I was being beaten to death with a candle stick by a twelve year old boy, by the way that never leaves the group, but how did you do that white light thing that got us outa the other plane?"

"I think I can answer that one for ya'," Faith called from the bottom of the main staircase. "Looky who I ran into on the front lawn," Faith laughed.

"Speaking of uninvited guests..." Buffy mumbled. Standing next to Faith was an average height beautiful short haired brunette woman wearing a white shirt and brown canvas pants.

"Cordelia?" Willow announced in a shocked tone.

"At least somebody's glad to see me," Cordie replied.


	9. Episode 9: The Chase

(I own nothing to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse, I am just a fan!)

Summary of episode 9: Cordelia has returned into the lives of the scoobies and insists it is only a social call but Willow and Xander believe otherwise. Willow and Kennedy's relationship comes to a boiling point, while Dawn gives into teenage angst with a boy called Chase. After Robin's death Faith begins to block out everything and everyone meanwhile whilst out on patrol Buffy comes across a teenage Slayer named Chris who's gotten herself into some risky business. An old face is also uncovered right under the scoobies noses.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 9  
The Chase.

**Chapter 1**  
Cordelia surveyed her audience. She couldn't help but compare their faces to the last time she'd seen them all. She'd seen Buffy last four years ago when Faith went all rampagy on Angel and tortured Wesley in L.A.  
Her and Willow exchanged a phone call three years ago when Harmony had shown up in L.A and was looking to be the newest addition to _Angel Investigations _and then when Willow came to L.A to tell Angel that Buffy was dead_.  
_The phone call was the time when Cordelia learned that Willow was gay so she guessed that the petite girl standing next to Willow was her girlfriend. _You learn to keep an open mind when you're held prisoner as a higher being and then possessed by some demon spawn_ she thought.  
Xander dorky Harris. If asked this question Cordelia knew she would deny it completely, but he was the one she missed the most after leaving Sunnydale. She thought Giles would never change; he'd reach seventy and still be the same old Librarian Cordelia remembered. And then there was the black chick with the bad hair.  
Buffy, Giles, Willow, Xander, Kennedy and Rona slowly made their way down the main staircase into the main hall. Cordelia made with the meetings and greetings while Buffy pulled Faith aside.

"What the hell are you playing at?" Buffy asked angrily but in a hushed tone.

"Huh?" Faith replied.

"You don't remember that Angel said she was in a coma, after giving birth to a demon, who grew out of sucking a pacifier real fast, and tried to y'know end the world?" Buffy growled.

"What did you want me to do B? Leave her outside so you and your scoobies could tie her down and pour Holy Water Down her throat? I don't think so. If you want to play detective, be my guest," Faith said in dismissal.

"Where did you even find her?" Buffy asked.

"Well after I disappeared I woke up on the front lawn at Cordelia's feet. Told her I had to get back in the house and explained what went down, her eyes went all white and when I get back into the main hall this little brat thinks it's funny to throw chandeliers at me. But when it stopped and the kid went poof I knew you'd saved the day. Nothing new there," Faith said as a jab at her fellow Slayer. Buffy assumed that it was Cordelia who had rescued them from the other plane. That troubled Buffy, she knew about Cordelia's visions and connection to The Powers That Be but she couldn't imagine the popular Queen B of Sunnydale High with that kind of power.

"How are you so sure it's her?" Buffy asked.

"I just got a feelin'. You learn a thing or two when you've been to where I've been," Faith sighed.

"But what if she woke up different, we all know what can happen when coma people leave the hospital room," Buffy said. The look on Faith's face made Buffy wish she could take it back as soon as she said it. She knew how hard Faith was working on her issues and her expression quickly went from normal Faith angry to hurt to extra Faith angry.

"That was low B, even for you," Faith spat.

"Faith wait-" Buffy started before stopping at a one-finger hand gesture from Faith as she stormed off towards the old closed door. Buffy sighed heavily and ran her fingers through her hair.

"You don't trust me do you?" said a voice that sounded remarkably like Cordelia's. Buffy, stunned, spun around so fast she felt her knees and ankles click. She found Cordelia within nose touching distance to her.

"Can ya blame me?" Buffy said sceptically.

"I guess not," Cordelia stepped closer so that Buffy could feel her breathe as she spoke, "but on the contrary to your _'me me me'_ attitude, I'm not here for you." Buffy struggled with herself not to indulge in Cordelia's attempt at getting a reaction out of her.

"So why _are_ you here Cordelia? Not that it isn't good to see you it's just we have kind of a full house at the minute," Buffy said in a lame subtle attempt to retaliate to Cordelia's remark. Cordelia looked around at the huge empty Manor and gave Buffy a stern look.

"W-well it's not full at the m-moment," Buffy stammered. "But we-"

"Save you stuttering Buffy I won't be over staying my welcome-"

"Are ya sure? Because my hospitality has been worn thin during the time of our little catch-up," Buffy smirked.

"Guys!" Xander exclaimed. Buffy and Cordelia took their gaze from each other to Xander. "This isn't High School. Grow up," Xander said as he began to follow behind Faith through the old closed door.

"You guys Xander's right," Willow said hushed.

"They're right," Buffy admitted reluctantly with a glance back to Cordelia. "I'm sorry," she said. Cordelia sighed.

"Yeah me too." Buffy turned to Kennedy and Willow.

"Guy's if you could find Cordelia somewhere to stay, I get the feeling she isn't going anywhere anytime soon," Buffy said with a smile. "And Will if you could give Nick a call? Tell him our...other...guests are gone. I'm gonna follow after Faith and Xander, I might have some grovelling to do."

Willow nodded and went to use the phone that hung from a wall near the doors into the manor. Buffy turned towards the corridor to the smaller living room, Kitchen, garage and basement. She was about to push on the door to open it when Cordelia called back to her. "Buffy?"

"Yeah?" Buffy asked turning round. Cordelia stood silent for a moment before saying,

"Never mind." Buffy smiled and turned to the old door hallway. Cordelia turned back to Kennedy as Willow was still dialling. "So," she began, "you must be Tara."

The ceiling lights shone dimly on Xander who leaned against a wall holding a hysterical Kate. Buffy could tell that Xander was doing his best to fight back his tears and Kate's face was masked by a mass of black hair. Buffy was flabbergasted. "Xander what is it?" she asked worried. Xander shook his head from side to side and led Buffy with his eyes to the door to the garage. She pushed on it hesitantly. She hadn't in anyway prepared for what she was going to find. The room was full of grey smog and it seemed to ooze from all four corners of the room. Nicholas's car beeped every moment or so which Buffy knew meant it was low on gas. Buffy spotted Faith on the back wall under a shelf with one hand in her hair and the other over her mouth. Her waist down was blocked by the car. Buffy opened one of the tiny windows that hung near the ceiling before walking over to Faith and grabbing her by the shoulders. "Faith, what happened?" she asked. Faith remained silent with her face as white as a sheet. Faith shot a shaky glance towards the car. Buffy slowly turned around. The car door was almost off its hinges and in a tangled position on the floor laid Principal Robin Wood with his eyes wide and lifeless. Buffy dropped to his side and felt for a pulse.

"K-Kate said he w-was possessed when he...y'know," Faith announced. Buffy was speechless. She couldn't find the words in her head, like they protested in her mouth. Buffy took her hand which was holding her steady on the floor and closed Wood's eyes.

The next few days in the manor were hard for everyone. The atmosphere was dark, people upset, people angry and then Choa-Ann who didn't really understand. The gang buried Wood in the back yard about an hour after Faith found him, Faith didn't cry, didn't whimper didn't even so much as sniffle. If you think about it at this point they had only been going out just shy of three months. But everybody could tell he had fallen for Faith. Of course there was no way of knowing whether the feeling was mutual unless the words actually passed through Faith's lips, but it was clear they had a spark. After the burial Nicholas got word from the New Watchers Council that the foreign Slayers where to be taken to the airport to fly to London where they would be taken to whichever training facility spoke their language. Dawn took her stuff from Buffy's room and moved back up onto the fifth floor. Andrew sure was happy to stop baking over three hundred waffles in the mornings. All in all Willow took a head count and found the manor was home to thirty-eight Slayers including Buffy and Faith. In the two weeks of peace they had had in the manor before Willow went missing and Rona's incident in the cemetery Buffy realised one afternoon that these girls had been here a while and a lot of them hadn't had one proper training session. She had given about five training sessions in those two weeks but that was nowhere enough. She didn't ask whether Faith had done any while she was in L.A but she assumed she had when she heard about 'the daylight patrols'. Unless Faith just gave a girl a stake and threw her at a Vampire. _Things have to change_ Buffy thought as she was sitting in the living room in the main hall watching T.V with Dawn, Willow, Vi and Xander one night. Buffy had gotten used to having Cordelia around but was shaky as to why she was there in the first place. Cordelia explained that she woke up from her coma because of a vision from The Powers That Be and thought she'd look up old friends. But Ohio is a long way from a Los Angeles Hospital. Buffy was careful not to mention Angel around her. Cordelia hadn't mentioned she'd gone to see him yet, truth be told she hadn't mentioned him at all. Buffy knew about her feelings for the love of her life but she wouldn't allow it to be awkward. After all as Xander said, it wasn't High School. Before Buffy could complete another thought the door to the manor swung open and revealed a bruised Faith with a nasty gash across the left side of her face. She shut the door behind her and headed towards the stairs.

"Faith?" Buffy said loudly. Buffy heard Faith exhale as she reluctantly turned around to look at Buffy. "You been out?"

"Uh yeah, never a shortage of nasty's out there," Faith replied.

"Alone?" Buffy asked.

"Don't need a wannaslay brigade B, I can handle myself," Faith hummed.

"I see that," Buffy said as she got up from the couch and walked over to her fellow Slayer. Buffy raised her hand to Faiths' head wound but Faith pulled away.

"Oh yeah, a vamp got a little rough"

"Rough might be an understatement, you need to clean that," Buffy turned to Willow, "Will? Could you?"

"I'm Fine," Faith protested.

Willow began, "Faith, it could get infected-"

"Look!...just get outa my face okay, I'm fine," Faith said in finality. She bolted towards the stairs and was gone in seconds. Buffy released a breath she didn't know she was holding and turned around.

Vi began, "it's because of Principal Wood right? I mean I haven't known Faith as long as you all have but-"

"She's shutting people out Buff, playing the macho Slayer card. This could turn ugly," Xander interrupted.

"I just don't know what to say to her," Buffy admitted.

"She's supposed to patrol in the morning too, then Kennedy and I take over and then you're supposed to take the new girl out tonight right?" Vi said referring to Buffy.

"Alicia, right," Buffy sighed again. "Vi if you could take Rona with you in the afternoon and I'll have Kennedy do a sweep in the morning instead," Buffy suggested.

"Sounds like a plan," Xander agreed. Buffy sat back down on the couch.

"Well I'm gunna hit the hay, school tomorrow and I'm totally behind, night guys," Dawn said as she left the large living room.

"Don't stay up to late," Buffy advised. Dawn just raised an eyebrow in response before ascending the huge staircase.

Soon enough all the lights in the manor went out. Faith had been out a while so whatever bumpy's were out that night she figured were a pile of dust by now so she told Giles it was a waste of time taking a patrol out. Everybody seemed to have earned a good hard rest, it had been a crazy week.  
Buffy woke up in her own time that Monday morning. She'd forgotten to set her alarm and so when she looked over at the clock it read 11:38 am. It was the only peaceful night's sleep she'd had since moving into the manor. It wasn't plagued with dreams of death and violence and she hadn't woken up with worry about foreign Slayers hogging the bathrooms. She made her way down to the main hall and sat at the table. Giles placed a cup of hot coffee in front of her and sat down also with the day's newspaper in hand. "Feel rested?" he asked.

"Muchly," she smiled.

"Dawn said it was best not to wake you," Giles said.

"Dawn!" Buffy cried.

"Buffy it's okay; she left for school this morning safely on time with the other girls enrolled at her High School," Giles said calmly without looking up from a story titled _**GANG RELATED RAID LEAVES POLICE BAFFLED.**_

"Oh, what about patrols? Did Kennedy go out this morning?"

"Uh, n-no. Faith insisted she do it. Rona and uh Vi are waiting for her to come back," Giles struggled. Buffy sighed heavily. The rest of the day was a blur. Willow made a trip to the magic shop downtown because the van that used to come every Monday morning never showed up, Xander spent the day in one of the first floor rooms punching a punching bag with Cordelia, Giles read the paper...over and over, Faith came back to the house about 1:30 pm less brusiey but then she hit one of the training rooms too. Nicholas disappeared for the day with a couple Wolfram & Hart Executive's down in the basement. Buffy guessed they were finally sprucing it up, Andrew staying in his room, his ankle was still in a bad way but he milked it every chance he got. Dawn and the girls got back about 4:30 and before Buffy knew it Alicia was ready and waiting by the door with more weapons than the human body could handle. Alicia spotted the look on Buffy's face.

"To much?" she asked with a wince.

"Just a tad," Buffy smiled. "Hmmmm...how about the good old fashioned wooden stake and another sharp accessory of your choice?" Alicia smiled wide and grabbed a sharpened stake and leaned in for the crossbow. "Except that," Buffy interrupted. Alicia frowned and grabbed for a small battle-axe.  
Buffy and Alicia left the manor and headed for one of the eleven cemeteries in Cleveland. Alicia was a little on edge, Buffy tried to explain that most of the time if there was going to be an attack you'd know by instinct. But she messed up with the phrase 'most of the time'.

"How do you do this Buffy, walk around cemeteries at all hours of the night? I mean you're only twenty-two right?"

"Bin doin' it for a long while, besides the superpowers help," Buffy joked.

"How long is a while?"

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen?"

"I was fifteen when I met my first vampire," Buffy said lowly.

"Fifteen? God, but back then it was just you right? Like you where **THE** Slayer?"

"Yatzee," Buffy sighed. "But I got by."

"But you died twice,"

"Oh yeah," Buffy looked down at the floor. "I think I had something those Slayers before me didn't have. A life besides Slaying. I love my friends and I'm so grateful for them, they're responsible for getting me here," Buffy smiled.

"That was kinda' beautiful," Alicia babbled.

"I have my moments," Buffy laughed.

"Uh Buffy?"

"Yeah?" Buffy turned around and found Alicia had stopped frozen cuddling her stake.

"I think I just found my second vampire!" Before Buffy could turn around she already suffered a punch to the face which knocked her to the ground.

"Hate it when they surprise me," Buffy sounded.

Buffy swung her leg so it collided with the ankles of the vampire and took him to the floor too. She swiftly grabbed her stake from her jeans pocket and began to thrust it at the vamps heart when he caught her hand just before collision and used it to hoist Buffy over him and into a stone grave. Alicia shakily ran in with her axe but the vamp shot her out of the way with a back hand punch which sent her hurtling over a mound of soil and her dropping her axe. The vampire went for the axe and gripped it in his right hand. Buffy steadily got to her feet and grabbed her stake. The vampire growled deeply and launched the axe in Buffy's direction but missed as Buffy dived to the left just in time. She got up and felt that familiar charge, trusting her instincts, Buffy took off in the direction of the vampire but stopped when he cried out in pain and fell to the ground revealing Alicia with a bloodied stake.

Alicia began. "**oh my god! I did it-**" but before she could finish the vampire had stopped grovelling and knocked her to the ground. Alicia was crushed under his weight but suddenly felt him disappear. Buffy had pulled him off forcefully that he crashed into a headstone. Buffy plunged her stake deep into the vampire before he exploded into dust.

"Let me guess, I didn't get the heart?"

"'Fraid not, but it's a start," Buffy smiled unconvincingly.

All of a sudden the cemetery was masked with flashing red and blue light. Buffy dragged Alicia behind a crypt as about five cops with dogs ran through the grass and looked behind gravestones. Buffy looked over the headstone to where her and Alicia where hiding. Her eyes found a young girl with curly blonde hair, the same tone as her own, who stood with her back on a tomb. Her black leather jacket reflected the light of the police cars onto her face. She wore a little too much eyeliner than Buffy liked, kinda' like Faith's. The girl spotted Buffy behind the headstones and bolted for the nearby 8ft brick wall that surrounded the graveyard. She elegantly leapt to the top of a crypt and then over the wall. Alicia seemed to have spotted the girl as well.

"What's her deal? Vampire?" she asked puzzled from behind the headstone.

"I think she's just the opposite," Buffy replied.

**Chapter 2**  
Buffy and Alicia hid for about fifteen more minutes before the police left the graveyard. They had scowered every possible nook and cranny in hopes of finding this mysterious girl. Unfortunately the average policeman cannot scale an 8ft wall in a single jump, the girl was long gone. After hearing the loud clang of the cemeteries front gate coming to a swift collide Alicia and Buffy came out from behind a crypt and breathed a sigh of relief. They started towards the exit in silence. The cops defiantly wanted this girl bad and when she had set eyes on Buffy she had sped off quicker than a deer hearing a twig snap in the distance.

"Is it possible?" Alicia asked after they had walked about half a block.

"What?" Buffy replied.

"Another Slayer, right here under your noses. I mean I've only been here just over a week but that seems kinda' slacky," Alicia announced.

"I don't understand how Willow didn't sense her, she has had a lot on her mind what with getting back on her feet and with our newest arrival," Buffy said slyly.

"Cordelia seems nice," Alicia added.

"She is…just only when she feels like it," Buffy joked. The girls reached the industrial estate cut off when they picked up on a loud ruckus going on down an alley. Alicia instantly reached for her axe while Buffy just sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.

"C-could just be a mugging?" Alicia said upbeat but in a way that let Buffy know Alicia wasn't convincing anybody, not even herself.

"I got this one, you should head home," Buffy said.

"But what about-", Alicia stopped talking when she spotted Buffy's expression.

"The Manor is a few blocks away, don't take any shortcuts and stay on the streets," Buffy advised.

"And I won't talk to strangers even if they offer me candy," Alicia said sarcastically.

Buffy headed down the alley to find two vampires pinning down a brunette woman, the vampire whom had hold of the left side of her body was lowering his head towards her neck. "When will girls ever learn that going down dark alleys at night 80% of the time leads to a gruesome bloody death?" Buffy said cockily to get the vampires' attention. They turned their heads and surveyed the blond rescuer. In actual fact the girl didn't need rescuing. She had hurled one vamp into a dumpster and sent the other shooting over Buffy's head as she got up. Faith picked up one of the legs of a broken chair and thrust it into the vampires hearts as they went back for her. Through the cloud of dust Faith met Buffy's gaze.

"You're out late," Faith began.

"_You're out late_**?** I just found you about to be a midnight snack and that's what you come up with?" Buffy said.

"I had those guys," Faith said defensively.

"No, they had you in the fetal position," Buffy retaliated. "Faith something's up."

"Why are you making such a big deal out of this Buffy, I go out, I slay I go home, day restarts. Me being in a routine make's you think something's up? I'm fine," Faith argued.

"The fact that you just called me _Buffy_ is all the proof that you're not yourself," Buffy said sincerely. Faith rolled her eyes. "Faith everybody deals with loss differently-"

"Yeah well I dealt with it already. This is just me being me," Faith started towards the street. Buffy couldn't let Faith go back out patrolling, after what she'd just walked in on she thought this might be the night Faith wouldn't come back home.

"There was a girl," Buffy called back. Faith stopped, "in the cemetery."

"That's nice B but-"

"She was being chased by the police when she jumped over an 8ft wall and disappeared," Buffy said.

"Let's go," Faith said.

Buffy and Faith headed back to the cemetery, Buffy left a message on Willow's cell saying not to wait up, that Faith was with her and that she'd explain in the morning. Buffy led Faith to the boundary wall where Faith leaped to the top and surveyed the busy street. Buffy began, "I think she might have headed for one of the alley's across the street but-"

"No, if the cops where on her she would have stayed in the streets, blend in a crowd, disappear," Faith whispered before dropping off the other side of the wall and hitting the floor without a wince. Buffy soon followed her. "She'd have headed towards the right in a huddle of people before slipping into an alley" Faith announced in a hushed tone before setting off down the right side of the street. After walking for three or four minutes Faith whispered, "here," and entered a dimply lit back alley.

"Where now?" Buffy asked. Faith looked around at the tall buildings when she set eyes on an old condemned warehouse sign. Buffy followed Faith's train of thought.

"But that makes no sense; why not hide out here for a while before going home?" Buffy said baffled.

"Because she doesn't have one, from what you've said she's not your average teenager. I think she either came this way to hide out in the warehouse, or she lives in it," before Buffy could answer Faith was already jogging further down the alley, dodging dumpsters and ignoring the hoards of rats.  
The Slayers reached the warehouse fence were they saw a gathering of homeless people and squatters sitting on abandoned furniture around burning trash cans tossing round loaves of bread, the ground was littered with once white and now green mattresses and blankets and one single radio bellowed out loud hip-hop and rock music. At the rusted double doors of the warehouse sat an Asian man in baggy cargo pants and a letterman jacket. He couldn't have been much older than Buffy. He got to his feet to adjust his belt when Buffy spotted a metallic gun in his pants.

Buffy began, "Faith-"

"Hold up," Faith interrupted at the sight of a curly haired blond in a leather jacket walking up to, what Faith assumed was, the door man. The doorman welcomed the girl like family, they exchanged a quick hug before he held the door aside so the girl could go in. "That our girl?" Faith asked.

"That's the one," Buffy hummed. "We should come back in the morning, re-group, maybe get the guys on it-" before Buffy could finish Faith had already slipped through a gap in the fence and held it open for her. "Or not…"  
Buffy climbed through the gap and stood looking at the landscape. "How are we going to get passed him?" Buffy asked referring to the man with the gun.

"Either the fire escape, or the front door," Faith said slyly. Faith began to set off through the crowd of homeless people when Buffy grabbed her by the forearm.

"What the hell are you doing? Is this a game to you? We may be strong, but we're not bulletproof!" Buffy whispered angrily. Buffy headed towards the fire escape with a defeated Faith shortly behind her. Buffy majestically scaled the wall onto the ledge of the fire escape and thrust the ladder down onto the concrete. Faith pulled herself up and they quickly made their way up the stairs and through one of the doors to the upper platforms of the warehouse. The structure was dimly lit except for several large light bulbs buzzing loudly and casting a yellow glow around the room. The wall's were missing bricks, the ceiling missing tiles and the floor missing a good mop. The girl from the cemetery was being warmly greeted by the seventeen people inside the warehouse. She pulled a white sheet of paper out of her pocket and headed for a man sitting on a, less than hygienic, sofa at the back wall next to a table of expensive jewellery. Buffy flashed back to the headline she'd seen on Giles' paper that morning. _**'GANG RAID LEAVES POLICE BAFFLED.'**_  
The man on the sofa, who seemed to be the one in charge, greeted the girl with a surveying look and a wink. The girl showed no reaction. She raised the hand that had the paper in it and the man snatched it from her.

"You're sure you weren't followed?" the man asked.

"I lost the cops back in New Haven Cemetery," the girl replied.

"And you're sure this is the right address?"

"Positive." The man looked the girl up and down once more.

"Good work Chris," he smiled.

Chris falsely smiled back before she returned to the rest of the gang members in the warehouse. Faith and Buffy, who had heard every word of the conversation, exchanged a worried look.

-Back at the manor Xander was working up a sweat in one of the first floor training rooms alone. He'd been in there for hours now. He didn't even notice it had gotten dark out. He was busy making forceful contact with a punching bag when a knock on the door startled him. "C'min," he called. Cordelia's head peered around the door frame.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Sure," he replied. Cordelia moved into the room and sat down on one of the training mats.

"How goes the Xander Harris search for employment?" she asked.

"Ahh…not well," he replied.

"Because…" she asked inquisitively. Xander sighed and turned to her.

"Well turns out there's not much…for me…in the area and what construction jobs I did find turned me down on sight because of this damn eye patch," he sighed. He took a seat next to Cordelia on the mat.

"You never did fill me in on how you came about the whole pirate thing," Cordelia said.

"Well tell me why you decided to stop by Cleveland, Ohio and I might just do that," he replied.

"I told you I just wanted to look up old friends-"

"Yeah but you and me both know that story is about as convincing as telling _Roadrunner _the laws of gravity," he smiled. She returned his smile.

"Gotta say I prefer this Cordelia than the one in High School," he breathed.

"Really?"

"Well not that making-out in the janitor's closet wasn't fun and all-". Cordelia playfully punched him on the arm with a laugh.  
Their conversation was quickly forced to be put on hold when an angry Willow stormed into the room looking seriously pissed. Willow set her sights on Cordelia.

"Why did you do it?" Willow asked.

"Um, beg pardon?" Cordelia replied.

"You know what I'm talking about Cordelia," Willow said frustrated. Cordelia got to her feet.

"Willow I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about," Cordelia pleaded.

"You called her Tara," Willow announced in a way that sounded like she was about to cry. The room fell silent for moment. "You knew Tara was dead, surely Angel told you about Willow's trip to the darkside so you must have known…so why?"

"Willow it was an honest mistake," Cordelia said in her defence.

"That's not true and you know it," Willow spat. "I have worked _so_ hard to keep my relationship with Kennedy going and now she has it in her head that she's just the rebound girl!"

"Look Willow I could talk to Kennedy if you want but in all honesty I had no idea," Cordelia announced.

"Whatever," Willow hummed in angry dismissal. Willow bolted from the room and down the hallway.

"Will!" Xander called after her. Xander realised there was no point going after the angry red-head and so turned back to the training room. Cordelia stood with her face buried in her hands.

She began, "Xander I really didn't have any idea-"

"I know I believe you," he lied. "But I think we should call it a night for now. It's," he looked at his watch, "just passed 2 a.m, I'm gunna go to bed. Besides Buffy should be back any minute. Goodnight Cordy."

"Xander-" she called after him.

"Goodnight Cordelia," he called back as he slammed the door behind him.

Willow got back to her room on the fourth floor and closed the door behind her. Kennedy had just stepped out of the shower. Kennedy saw the expression on her lover's face. "You said something didn't you?" Kennedy asked as she briskly dried her hair. Kennedy had gotten in from patrol about a half hour ago. The fact that Willow didn't reply gave Kennedy her answer. "Willow I told you not to!"

"What was I supposed to do? She knew who you were when she met you! She's just trying to stir things up…it's who she is," Willow argued.

"Well then now all you've done is give her the satisfaction of knowing she can get to you," Kennedy retaliated. "I should go apologize," she added after a moment of awkward silence.

"Apologize? For what?" Willow asked.

"I-I dunno. Maybe Cordelia's just trying to break into the Slayer inner circle or something," Kennedy suggested.

"No way, Cordelia has never wanted anything to do with we scoobies, ever," Willow argued.

"People change Will. You scoobies are-"

"What d'you mean '_you scoobies_'?"

"Well y'know, you, Buffy, Xander, Giles…even Faith."

"And…you," Willow added.

"Well…not really," she replied.

"Kennedy you're not an outsider,"

"Well, yeah, I kinda' am?"

"No, no you're not," Willow argued as she took Kennedy into a hug which she shrugged off fast.

"Can-can we not do this now? I'm really beat." Willow silently nodded and crawled into bed. Kennedy took a pair of pyjamas from the draw and climbed in also. With the two lovers on the opposite sides of the bed instead of cuddled in the middle, the short distance felt like miles.

-Back at the Warehouse Faith and Buffy still stood on the upper levels overlooking the group of people below them, the girl, Chris, was sitting with three older woman in ripped jeans and leather jackets in the corner next to a small radio. Chris took out a cigarette and set it alight. "You're call B," Faith whispered. Buffy pondered her next move as she gripped the metal rail of the upper level.

"Little miss rebellion isn't going anywhere, at least not for now. We'll come back in the morning? Or ill have one of the girls keep an eye out for her and we'll approach while she's alone?" Buffy suggested. Buffy spotted Faith's expression. "What?" she asked.

"If we're gonna go with you're plan of action we gotta go fast. These metal upper levels aren't stable and we're about to make a serious swan dive," Faith pointed out. Buffy looked at the trembling screws in the ceiling, Faith wasn't kidding. Quickly and quietly the Slayers made their way toward the fire escape. Faith was the first one onto the fire escape ledge with Buffy a short distance behind her. Faith stood holding the door open for Buffy but in all the hurry Buffy accidentally knocked an old dusty cardboard box off the rail and sent it plummeting down to the ground. It landed directly on top of the radio and the warehouse fell completely silent. The gang members all looked from the box and then to the ceiling.  
Buffy stopped still.

"Stealth much?" Faith digged. The upper level suddenly began to quake and the screws in the ceiling dropped off one by one. Buffy began to panic and before she knew it the floor had vanished from the soles of her feet and she was weightless, tumbling to the ground. "**Buffy!**" Faith exclaimed. The people below scurried from the seats to the walls so as to not be crushed by the falling debris. Buffy braced herself for impact. She hit the ground heavily and it seemed like all the oxygen in her body was sucked away.  
The dust cleared and all eyes where on the well dressed blonde amongst a pile of rubble on the floor. Buffy had earned herself a few cuts on her side from the impact and possibly a broken rib.  
Faith had hurried down the fire escape as soon as Buffy had begun to fall.  
Buffy tried to sit up and as she did so she clutched at her side where she'd hit the ground. She knocked her hair out of her eyes and looked around at the angry and confused mass of people who probably all had a revolver in their back pocket.

"Ohh..." she moaned. The guy in charge appeared out of nowhere and towered over her.

"Looky looky," he sniggered. "What d'we got here?"

"Don't mind me," Buffy coughed. "Just thought I'd _drop_ in. Drop…get it? Gee…tough room."

"You're in no position to be makin' jokes lady," the man replied.

"I get that, so I should just be on my way," Buffy watched as the gang members stepped closer towards her, "but I doubt it."

"You," Chris called from behind Buffy. Buffy awkwardly got to her feet and turned to face Chris. Buffy was hoping Chris wouldn't recognise her.

"What? You know this chick?" the man called.

"She was in the cemetery when I was getting chased. She's a cop," Chris sighed.

"I'm not a cop," Buffy said in her defence.

"You said you weren't followed!" the man exclaimed.

"Easy Calvin!" shouted a woman from Buffy's south in reference to the man in charge. The woman received a threatening look for speaking up.

"I'll deal wid'you later," Calvin said as he pointed his finger at Chris. He gave his gaze back to Buffy. "Now, what're we gonna do with you beautiful?"

The double doors of the warehouse where suddenly flung open because of the force of the doorman being catapulted through them. He hit the ground hard at Calvin's feat. Faith casually stepped into the structure pointing the doorman's metallic gun at Calvin. "I think you need to step away from her," Faith hissed. Faith's presence caught the attention of everybody in the room. "Weapons on the ground or I pop this guys head chock fulla' nine millimetre bullets," Faith ordered while keeping eye contact with the gang leader.

"Don't do it, this cop aint goona do sh*t," Calvin laughed.

"Well I aint a cop, in fact I'm an escaped convict wanted for murder so unless you think I'm kidding I suggest you get your cronies to put the merchandise on the ground," Faith retaliated. Chris, who was just out of Faith's line of vision, began to slowly back towards a wall and edge towards her. "Try it kid and lose an arm," Faith called. Chris stopped still. Turns out the only one with a gun handy was the leader, Calvin, everybody else, including the newest Slayer, tossed a knife on the ground instead. "B, we're leaving," Faith said.

"Not without what we came for," Buffy said.

"And what might that be," Calvin sniggered. Buffy wondered whether to take Chris by force, but then she realised that she'd already gotten her in enough trouble and if Chris decided not to stay at the manor she'd have to come back here.

"Nevermind," Buffy grunted as she strutted towards the exit shooting Chris a look.

"It was a pleasure," Faith sneered as Buffy passed her and she closed the doors. Back inside the warehouse, all eyes were trained on Chris. Outside however, Buffy was starting to feel the burn of her injuries. As the two walked through the gathering of homeless people, who stared with mouths wide open, Buffy nearly toppled over once or twice. They got back onto the street and began the journey back to the manor. It was almost three in the morning so the streets were quiet and empty. Faith picked up on Buffy's struggle to keep going. "B…I'm not one for the whole rescuing the damsel in distress but uh…you look a couple minutes from passing out. I'm not too excited about the idea of carrying you but I could take one for the team-"

"Let's just get home, quietly," Buffy replied interrupting her.

"Y-yeah," Faith said a little hurt.

Back at the warehouse Chris and the rest of Calvin's lackey's where clearing the rubble in the main room while Calvin slipped into one of the abandoned offices. He shut the door of the dark empty room tight and lit a cigarette. "You said you'd help me get the 'ice' if I brought you a Slayer, well two just showed up in the next room and pointed a gun in my face. What happened?" Calvin asked the room angrily.  
A hooded, tall figure stepped out from the shadows.

"**Even I could not take down those Slayers alone**," the figure said demonically. "**If I'm to have **_**any**_** chance of surviving what's coming I need the control of a Slayer at my **_**beckoned **_**call**." Calvin puffed his cigarette aggressively and turned to the demon. "**The blond one**," the demon hummed.

"Yeah, Buffy Summers right?" Calvin asked.

"**No, the other one**," the demon shouted frustrated.

"But, the only other blond in there was…Chris? No way!" Calvin said, "There's no way that runt's a Slayer."

"**Chris**," the demon laughed menacingly, "**watch her**," the demon ordered.

**Chapter 3**  
When Buffy and Faith arrived back at the manor the night sky was still in place. The exterior of the manor was dimly lit by the few lights still left on in some rooms. Faith entered the code into the iron gates and they opened quickly and quietly. They made their way up the private narrow road and trotted lightly on the porch. Buffy rummaged in her pockets for her key and pushed it into the slot. Before turning it however she took a glance at her watch and it read 5:17 am. Buffy sighed and twisted the key and pushed on the door. She noticed Faith hat sat down on one of the deck chairs. "You coming inside?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, ill uh, be in in a minute," Faith replied. Buffy furrowed her brow at her.

"Faith you can't go back out again, you're exhausted-"

"**I'm not**…I just wanna sit okay?" Faith asked rhetorically. She caught a look from Buffy who still wasn't convinced. "B, I'm not gunna wait for the sun to come up so I can go off singing _The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Music_, I just wanna-"

"I'll see you in the morning," Buffy interrupted her. Buffy stepped into the manor but stepped back out again at the sound of Faith's voice.

"B? I uh, thanks for tonight…that thing in the alley, was getting kinda hairy there for second," Faith said awkwardly and reluctantly. Buffy just smiled before re-entering the manor and closing the huge door behind her. Buffy gazed at the oak floors of the manor, the red curtains that hung closed over the huge windows, the two staircases that leaded to he upper floors that where draped in a fine red carpet. As she did this she realised she no longer had the energy to climb three flights of stairs and so headed toward the open living room on the right side of the main hall. She achingly laid her head against the armrest and closed her eyes. _'Just for a second'_ she thought before quietly drifting off to sleep.

Buffy suddenly found herself dressed in armour standing on the front lawn of what she assumed was the manor amongst thirty or forty men in a tight formation. She gazed around at the men who stood in fear watching as the huge wall surrounding the manor and the Cliffside was being breached by hoards of vampires. "**FOR VICTORY!**" exclaimed a man at the front. The men all raised their swords and shouted loudly before advancing towards the wall leaving Buffy alone upon the steps. The men clearly didn't know the vampires were in fact vampires due to their amazed expression when their swords where plunged into the stomach's of the vampires and they did not die.

Buffy turned to the manor. The brick was different; it resembled the overgrown moss ridden slate that covered certain parts of the manor's exterior that she remembered. The door however remained the same except it was newer. The windows where but holes in the wall. Buffy's attention was caught by the sound of explosions within the manor. She pushed the door and found ghostly figures of men and vampires duelling each other. The usual wooden floor was the same stony colour of the walls but the only thing that remained the same was the closed door that led to the basement. However when Buffy opened the closed door she found only large stone steps leading to the basement. No kitchen, Lounge, Library…just ominous steps. Buffy, in a trancelike state, descended the steps and entered an enormous room dimly lit by torch light. A woman wearing white armour began to undress in the centre of the room. She took off her helmet and revealed long flowing black her which reached down to her lower back. Then off went the chest plate, arm and leg guards and steel boots leaving the woman only in a dazzling white cloth. She stepped into a circle of green powder which had candles at four main points. The candles illuminated as she entered. The woman placed an object in the centre of the circle but Buffy could not make out what it was.

"I knew you would come eventually," the woman said with her back turned. The woman turned around revealing strong brown eyes and perfectly sculptured features. Buffy opened her mouth to speak but was immediately cut off. "Don't speak," the woman said softly. Buffy ignored this.

"Why am I here? Why did you bring me here?" Buffy asked. The woman stared at her approvingly.

"To warn you," the woman replied.

"Warn me of what?" Buffy asked angrily.

"To warn you that he is on his way much faster than I am," the black haired lady responded.

"He who? Who's the he that's coming? Who're you?" Buffy asked angrily.

"You must do it again, for if I am not there when he arrives we will have no chance of success don't you see!" the woman cried in frustration.

"Okay lady I am _completely_ lost. I must do what again? Success in what? Who's _we_?" Buffy asked in the same tone of frustration.

"You are not yet ready," the woman said in disappointment.

"Look, I never was much good with the cryptic," Buffy replied.

"Know that I will be there soon, but not soon enough if you do not find it! Be ready," the woman said before a mass of ghostly hoards entered the basement.

"_**Buffy! Buffy!**_" cried the voice of Giles. Buffy was jolted awake by the loud shouts and vigorous shaking of her watcher. Buffy shot up right and opened her eyes only to be attacked by the sunlight that shone through the window towards the cliff.

"What is it?" Buffy asked dazed.

"You where dreaming, "Giles said as he handed her a cup of coffee. She took it gladly and took another glance at the window.

"Giles it's just turned sunrise, why are you up so early?" Buffy asked.

"Well forgive me if I want to eat my morning crumpet and toast in peace before the hoard of teenagers descend upon the land," Giles said as he sipped his tea. Buffy smiled and followed him to the dining table. She assumed the mass of dark brown hair outside the front window was Faith asleep on the deck chair. "So, was that the regular 'the cat stole my bubble-bath' dream? Or the 'oh dear run for your lives a giant snake is going to eat the entire students' dream?" Giles said as he read the front page of the newspaper. Buffy began to think.

"T-that darn kitty," she stuttered. Giles gave her a nod and smile. She glanced down at his newspaper. _**'Cleveland Gang Strikes Again, Murder in the First Degree.'**_ Buffy snatched the paper from him.

"Hey!" he said angrily. She rolled her eyes and began to read.

_'Early hours last night a witness says a man and woman broke into the home of one Kyle Humphrey and shot him dead in cold blood. Police have made a statement saying the motive for this homicide is unknown and the firearm was uncovered at the scene. Police have in fact taken the young woman, age 17, into custody. Whether the woman is co-operating is unknown, full story tonight a 6.'_

"Buffy, gang related crime isn't our area of expertise, I think you should let the police handle it," Giles suggested. Giles caught Buffy's expression, "oh God, what don't I know?"  
Buffy spent the rest of that half-hour explaining to Giles the events of last night beginning with the cemetery and ending when he had woken her up that morning. She left out her whole weird dream sequence because even though it was a long time ago, the whole fiasco with Giles, Robin and Spike still left her with some trust issues. She still hadn't worked up the courage to tell him, or even tell anybody, that Spike was alive and living in Los Angeles with Angel. But as for everything in the life of Buffy Summers, it just had to be another day's problem.

"And you suspect this _Chris_ to be the girl the police captured?" Giles asked after Buffy was finished talking.

"Yeah, but you didn't see this Calvin guy Giles, I mean Chris is no push over, from first glance its obvious but this guy scares her. I really don't think she killed that guy," Buffy added.

"But you did see her give this _Calvin_ Mr. Humphrey's address?" Giles responded.

"Yeah," Buffy exhaled heavily. "We need to talk to her," Buffy suggested.

"Maybe you could go down to the county prison?" Giles replied.

"I should change, and then see Dawn, she's probably worried sick," Buffy said.

Faith had woken up at the sound of the iron gates down the private road coming to a close. She remained sitting in the corner deck chair out of plain sight as she watched a light brunette girl take the walk of shame up the porch steps. Dawn peered her head around the window behind the dining room table and spotted Giles and Buffy talking. "Crap," she whispered.

"Well well well," Faith called. Dawn jumped at the sound of a voice that wasn't her own and spotted the second original Slayer surveying her from the opposite side of the porch.

"Faith!" Dawn said wide eyed with her cheeks turning a darker shade of red. "You're up early," Dawn stated. Faith got up and walked to Dawn.

"And I'm guessing you never went to sleep," Faith replied as she took Dawn's bra strap from her upper arm and tucked it under her shirt.

"Look, I know what this look's like," Dawn said.

"No beef squirt, you wanna play big sis that's your deal, but if B asks if I've seen you I'm not gunna lie," Faith tilted her head toward the window and spotted Buffy and Giles. "C'mon, I'll give you a boost up to the fire escape."

Dawn followed Faith around to the fire escape of the manor. Faith put her palms together and braced herself. "Just for the record," Dawn said as she clambered into Faith's palms, "I wasn't having sex."

"Didn't ask," Faith laughed. When Dawn got safely onto the ledge Faith saluted her from the ground and made her way back to the porch. Dawn headed up to the fifth floor recreation balcony where Amalia was talking on her cell phone to her grandmother. She stared at Dawn disapprovingly.

"You didn't see anything," Dawn ordered. But before Dawn was fully off of the ledge Buffy stepped onto the balcony looking for her. Buffy spotted her and folded her arms.

"Get to your room," Buffy ordered in a false tone of calm. Dawn hung her head and passed Buffy when she headed toward her room. Once inside she set her bag down on the bed and sat beside it waiting for the inevitable big sister lecture. Buffy entered the room and closed the door tightly behind her.

The silence was deafening for both sisters.

Buffy began pacing up and down the end of Dawn's bed. She stopped abruptly and turned to Dawn. "If you know what's good for you, you won't lie to me," Buffy said.

"Scouts honour," Dawn said seriously. Buffy exhaled and sat, back straight, on the end of Dawn's bed.

"Were you with a boy?" Buffy asked.

"Yes, but Buffy his name is Chase, he goes to my High School, he's smart and kind and funny and-" Dawn was cut off mid explanation.

"Were you having sex?" Buffy asked painfully. Both sisters cringed.

"Ew, no," Dawn replied.

"Don't lie to me Dawn; I'm really not up for playing detective right now. I have too much going on," Buffy said.

"Oh, and I'm just an inconvenience in your busy life right?" Dawn hissed.

"You know that's not what I meant," Buffy argued. "Where you safe?" Buffy cringed.

"Buffy! I wasn't having sex!" Dawn said angrily. "And even if I was I'm **17**!" Dawn said.

"Technically, you're three and a half," Buffy responded. Dawn rolled her eyes but before they could continue Giles entered the room.

"Buffy if you're going to go to the police station I think it best to go now," Giles suggested. He quickly adapted to the atmosphere in the room. "Now what have I missed?"

"I can't go _now_, I have to deal with this," Buffy whispered an attempt to keep Dawn out of earshot. Dawn scoffed. _Fail_ Buffy thought.

"I could do it," Cordelia called from the corridor.

"How long have you been standing there?" Giles asked with a stern expression.

"Long enough," Cordelia said.

"I don't know Cordelia," Buffy said.

"C'mon, it can be the way I earn my keep," Cordelia offered.

"She makes a good point," Dawn added but quickly shut the hell up when she received a look from her sister.

"Okay but just try to be…less Cordelia," Buffy said in the nicest way she could.

"The fact that I'm going to let that one slide should show how I've grown as a person," Cordelia beamed. Giles and Buffy exchanged a look.

"Take Nicholas," they said in unison.

"I don't see why I had to baby sit you," Nicholas said after an awkward half-hour of silence in his car.

"Hey hey, you arnt the best company either Mr!" Cordelia argued from the front passenger seat. "And what's with the glasses, you can't even see the sun?" she scrutinised.

"It's my thing, just as I'm sure yours is late night television and Baywatch," he said back.

"And just what's that supposed to mean?" Cordelia asked angrily. Nick sighed.

"Nothing, lets just have quiet from now on," he suggested.

"Fine by me," Cordelia replied stubbornly.

"Thank you," he said. Silent moments passed.

"And Baywatch is a great show!" Cordelia piped up.

"What did I just say?" Nicholas said losing his temper.

"God, if you're were gunna get snappy about it I would've taken a cab," Cordelia said.

"I'm not snappy-" he argued but then cut himself off. _'Why Buffy stuck me with her dirty work I don't know_,_'_ he thought to himself.

"So how long have you been in love with her?" Cordelia asked.

"What?" Nicholas asked taken off guard. "In love with whom?" he asked.

"Buffy," Cordelia added.

"What?" he laughed falsely. "Buffy and I are just friends. No, we're business associates," he said proudly.

"Whatever gets you to sleep at night buddy," Cordelia said antagonizing.

"What makes you _**so**_ sure I'm in love with Buffy?" he asked.

"You just thought it," Cordelia smiled.

"Now that's cheating! You never said you can read minds," he replied.

"Because I can't, I was fishing, and I think I just caught a big one," she said with a soft look. He wouldn't meet her gaze. "Is that the prison?" she said after she realised he wasn't going to continue their conversation.

"Oh thank God," Nicholas whispered.

Nick and Cordelia parked their car at the back of the lot before changing into business suits. They had planned to disguise themselves as Chris's lawyers; otherwise they had no way of getting to her. Nicholas showed his Wolfram & Hart I.D card and the officers led them straight to the visiting desks. "The girl will be along any moment Mr. Reynolds," the officer assured him.

"Thank you," Nick smiled. He turned to Cordelia who seemed to be enjoying the dress up session a little too much. "Just allow me to do all the talking," he said. Cordelia agreed with this, she really didn't want the petty argument with him about how he thought she was going to screw everything up.  
Chris stepped out from behind iron bars with an officer forcefully escorting her to the other side of the glass. She wore a bright orange jumpsuit. Nicholas picked up the phone and held it to his ear. Chris sat down but before picking up the phone she studied the well dressed people on the other side of the glass.

"They told me my Lawyer was here to see me," Chris said.

"Why haven't you told the police your name?" Nicholas asked.

"Because I didn't kill that guy," Chris snapped.

"I believe you Chris," Nicholas said. Chris's eyes grew wide.

"How do you know my name?" she demanded.

"I don't get paid for just looking good," he replied. Cordelia rolled her eyes. "My associate and I are going to get you out of here by providing you with an alibi," Nicholas said. "Assuming you don't have one," he added. "I'm going to need you to be honest with me Chris."

"What do you mean provide her with an alibi? We can't lie to the police! We could get in serious trouble," Cordelia warned in a frantic whisper. Cordelia made Nicholas switch seats with her so that she could talk to Chris. "Listen kid, unlike my friend here I don't give a damn whether you rot in here or not-"

"What is this? Good cop bad cop?" Chris interrupted.

"However," Cordelia continued, "you may…have…something that we…need," Cordelia said. She couldn't blurt out the whole _You're A Slayer, Big Responsibility, Blah Blah Blah_ speech through a police telephone so sounding cryptic was her best option. After a few moment's Chris decided to cooperate.

"I didn't kill the guy in the apartment okay, I swear. All I did was get Calvin the address, his dirty work was his own," she said truthfully.

"So if you didn't kill Kyle Humphrey, how did you end up here?" Cordelia asked.

"I was the watchman. I didn't have **any** idea why Calvin wanted the guys address until I heard the gunshot. I was waiting for Calvin on the sidewalk when I saw the flash in the window. So I runs up to the apartment and find the guy dead on the floor. Blood pouring everywhere, spatters on the walls, pools in the carpet…and then…"

"And then what?" Cordelia asked.

"You're gunna think I'm crazy," Chris laughed falsely as she brushed the blond hair from her eyes.

"Try us, I'll bet you my life I've heard crazier," Cordelia reassured.

"R-right as I got up to the apartment, I tilted my head around the door, didn't want to barge in when there's a guy in there packing, and I…I could've sworn I saw Calvin disappearing with this tall guy in a hood. I couldn't see the guys face, but his hands, they weren't human hands, they where cloven and old and…then I opened the door and saw the gun next to the guy's head. So I bolted. I got outside and just started running. Turns out the cops had been following me and now, here I am."

Nicholas and Cordelia exchanged a look. He pulled out his cell phone and opened a contact titled _Rupert_. He typed, '_Research cloaked demon. Tall, cloven hands, can disappear. Be back at manor with Chris in no time.'_

**Chapter 4**  
Soon after that the guards took Chris back to her cell and Nicholas and Cordelia headed for the parking lot. Nicholas had said that seeing as the police had seen her outside the victims apartment they had no chance of getting her out with a convincing alibi. The last resort was to pay Chris's bail and find Calvin and turn him over to the police. But to do that they would have to sever the demon's bond over Calvin. They had argued over which target to shoot at first but they both decided that letting Chris sit in jail because of a crime she didn't commit wasn't right. Nicholas called the D.A and he stated Chris's bail was $15,000. "Where are we gonna get that kind of cash?" Cordelia asked.

"You're not going to like it I'm afraid," Nicholas said cautiously.

"What do you me-… No! No way! No chance in hell!" Cordelia replied as she followed his train of thought. Nicholas ignored her reaction and climbed into his car. Cordelia did the same. "You can't seriously be considering this can you?"

"Miss Chase, I am the Slayer's liaison to the Senior Partners, of course I'm considering it," he said with a hidden joke in his head.

"Wait, you work for Wolfram & Hart?" she asked.

"Technically, yes," he smirked.

"Great, they failed to mention I was getting into the car of someone at the head of Evil Incorporated!" Cordelia exclaimed.

"Well, not the head, more like the shoulders," he said as he pulled out of the prison car park and headed for the manor.

They pulled in onto the private roads leading up to the huge estate that the manor was located on and headed for the Cliffside. "I just want to grab a few things," Cordelia said.

"Well don't dawdle," Nicholas warned. Cordelia rolled her eyes and set off at a brisk pace up the path. She suddenly came to a stop at the sound of loud arguing coming in her direction.

"Baby, where are you going?" Willow asked loudly.

"I'm going out, I need to clear my head," Kennedy bellowed.

"Let's just go back inside and we'll talk," Willow begged.

"Oh I think we've talked enough Willow," Kennedy exclaimed.

"Kennedy!" Willow cried. Willow's suddenly enraged and loud voice made Kennedy stop and turn to her lover. "What do you want from me? I am trying so hard to make you happy, to make _us _work!"

"Exactly Willow! You shouldn't have to try, we should just be happy without all this effort," Kennedy said.

"What's this about? Last week we were good; things were good, what changed?" Willow asked solemnly.

"We did Will, we changed, and things haven't been right for a while. You've just been trying so hard to make this _charade_ work you haven't been paying attention to the problems in our relationship," informed Kennedy.

"This **charade**? What problems?" Willow said completely hurt by the term Kennedy had used to describe their relationship.

"I didn't mean that," Kennedy added.

"No, I think you did," Willow replied. Willow suddenly stormed passed Kennedy and spotted a well-dressed Cordelia standing down the path. Willow stopped. "Is it because of what she said? About Tara?" Willow asked pointing her finger at Cordy.

"I'm sorry that I can't be her for you," Kennedy said fighting back her tears.

"When have I ever asked you to be her for me?" Willow asked as it became apparent she'd lost the battle with her own tears. "I loved Tara so much and I never thought I could feel that way about a person again…but then I met you," Willow cried.

"But ill never be enough for you," Kennedy added with a rush of tears as she too lost her own battle. Willow was completely flabbergasted as to what to say. Kennedy had just poured salt all over her broken heart and she didn't want to risk saying anything else in case she felt gasoline poured onto it too. Willow set off at a brisk jog down the drive.

"Willow!" Kennedy called after her as she began to follow the fleeing red head.

"_Ticallem Rendomonium_," Willow whispered causing Kennedy's balance to upset until she lightly hit the ground. Cordelia rushed to Kennedy's side and looked back but could no longer see Willow's mass of red hair.  
Nicholas adjusted his mirrors and sunglasses when the passenger door opened and a body sat in the seat.

"Well you took your time- Tabitha?" Nicholas asked as he realised it wasn't Cordelia who had climbed into the car. "Willow, are you alright?" he asked.

"Where are we going?" Willow asked with a stern look at the windscreen.

"Wolfram & Hart," Nick added.

"Perfect, let's go," Willow said without meeting his gaze.

Kennedy and Cordelia opened the door to the manor. Kennedy hadn't spoken during the few minutes she'd been with Cordelia; instead she kept constant eye contact with the fortress she now called home. Kennedy bolted for the main staircase as soon as the entered the manor. Cordelia thought it best not to call after her. Instead she headed for the library behind the old closed door. She suspected Giles to be hard at work researching Chris's description of the demon with the gang leader. She pushed the door to the library open and found Giles, Xander, Buffy and Dawn with their heads in dusty books and demonology. "Cordelia?" Giles asked puzzled.

"Reporting for duty," Cordelia said in a false peppy tone.

"Where's Nick? And Chris?" Buffy asked.

"Chris is still behind bars. Turns out her boss did the shooting but he was with some hooded demony thing. The only way of getting her out for now is to pay the bail," Cordelia informed.

"Which is?" Xander asked.

"$15,000" Cordelia replied. Buffy sighed silently to herself.

"Okay, so we pay it, Giles how much do we still have in the council's bank account?" Buffy asked.

"$9000 at the most," Giles stated.

"Good, that's a start," Buffy added.

"Wait!" Cordelia exclaimed. Everybody's faces turned to her. "Nick said he'd take care of it," she added.

"By doing what?" Xander asked.

"He's on his way to Wolfram & Hart," Cordelia sighed. Xander and Buffy where both sent into a flux of memories of their recent encounter at Wolfram & Hart.

"Okay catching up," Xander began, "what's with us doing the demon research then if all we need to do is get Chris out on bail?" he asked.

"Because if the gang leader is shooting people on demand for this demon then he's into some serious dark mojo," Cordelia explained.

"And who's to say the demon won't use up Calvin and Chris and move onto some other city?" Giles added.

"Oh!" Dawn cried excitedly. This guy fit the description?" she asked holding the book up for Giles to see. Giles cleaned his glasses and took the book from Dawn while Cordelia took a seat in an empty chair around the table littered with books.

"Troxen, powerful old and rare demon who feeds on the souls of the deceased who refuse to move on. Says here they specialise in interdimensional travel. Feared for inflicting great chaos into the worlds they invade. Last case of a Troxen demon was 1976, after that there was nothing," Giles read.

"So what makes _Demon the Explorer_ interested in killing your average Joe while in league with a Cleveland gang leader?" Buffy added.

"I haven't the faintest idea," Giles said.

"Better question, how do you kill it?" Xander asked.

"Well you don't. You banish it back to the neatherrealm temporarily," Giles added.

"Wait, temporarily?" Buffy added.

"Well, Troxen's are immortal creatures Buffy, by temporarily I mean for hundreds of years, but not forever. Their body is destroyed while their essence is sent to the neatherrealm," he informed.

"I can deal with that. But we're gunna need serious magic to banish this thing, where's Willow?" Buffy asked.

Willow and Nicholas pulled up into the parking lot of the Cleveland branch of Wolfram & Hart. The all too familiar sign in front of the offices made Willow's heart skip a beat. Nicholas took the key out of the ignition and turned to Willow. "You can wait in the car, if you would prefer," he offered.

"No, it's just a law firm right, an evil law firm, but a law firm. I'm good," Willow painted a false smile on her face and stepped out of the car. The car beeped before locking and they made their way into the lobby of the building. It was like somebody had taken a 3D photograph of the L.A building and built a replica right here in Ohio. The plant's where the same shade of green, the wall's where the same pattern of wood, the glass was tinted in all the exact places, the reception desk was manned by a similar perky and annoying blond but the only difference was the man in charge. Instead of a brooding vampire with a soul, a middle aged man with bright blonde hair dressed in a black velvet suit stepped out of the head office with an entourage of people all with large writing books and briefcases. They where all chattering to the man about business deals and demon culture but he seemed to pay them no attention. He stepped fully into the lobby and set his sights on Nicholas and Willow. He raised his hand quickly and aggressively sending his lacky's into silence. They each dispersed into different directions while the man approached them.

"Well, Nicholas Reynolds, it's been a long time," he greeted warmly outstretching his hand in a friendly gesture.

"Too long Hector," Nick replied while taking his hand and shaking it.

"And who might this beauty be?" Hector asked as he broke his and Nicholas's handshake.

"Hector Pierce this is Willow Rosenberg," Nicholas introduced. Willow smiled awkwardly as Hector kissed her hand forcefully.

"So, _this _is the famous black-haired beauty that sent rifts through the mystical tide not so long ago," Hector sniggered as he advanced into Willow's personal space. Willow stepped back.

"That's not me anymore," Willow said firmly.

"Ahh," Hector said backing away, "pity. Join me in my office won't you?" Hector invited without waiting for a reply.

"This guy doesn't seem the sort to run the head of an evil empire," Willow whispered with Hector out of earshot as they slowly walked to his office.

"Juts don't piss him off," Nicholas warned seriously. When they arrived in Hector's office he took a seat behind his desk and left Willow and Nicholas standing awkwardly in front of it. "Terribly sorry to intrude Hector but I come with a request," Nicholas began.

"Alas, I knew this wasn't a social visit. It's always work, work, work with you Nicky. Come, have a drink," Hector invited.

"We, really don't have time for drinks," Willow said but quickly stopped after a terrifying stare from Hector and a knock in the arm from Nicholas.

"With all due respect sir, my colleague and I are on a very strict schedule," Nicholas informed timidly. Hector forcefully placed a bottle of scotch back on the shelf and turned back to his visitors.

"No matter, what can I do for you?" Hector asked. Nicholas and Willow, in a little too much detail, explained their current situation to the curious C.E.O.

"$15,000 for a criminal Slayer who is not even aware of her legacy and power?" Hector said with a raised eyebrow after they had concluded their tale.

"Yes sir," Nicholas added. Hector seemed to debate with himself within his mind for a moment or so.

"I will allow it, I am a bored man who is kept in this building far too much and I am curious as to how this _fiasco _will conclude, but as I am a business man…I have my terms," Hector winked.

"Name them," Willow said instinctively. Hector surveyed her approvingly.

"I will agree to the loan of $15,000 if the residents of the Slayer manor agree to help out the Cleveland branch of Wolfram & Hart whenever necessary," he beamed.

"Help out how?" Willow asked.

"Oh y'know, odd jobs here and there," Hector smirked.

Nicholas dropped Willow off at the Manor on his way to the prison with the bail money. It was getting dark out and as she climbed out of the car she spotted Vi with a platoon of girls ready for patrol. Willow bent down to the passenger mirror. "Are you sure agreeing with that guy was the best idea? I mean we don't know what we've got ourselves into here," Willow asked.

"Tabitha, there was no other way to get the money this short notice, we did what we could. Now get Buffy and find Calvin," he said.

"Wait, what're you gunna tell Chris? She still thinks you and Cordelia are her lawyers," she added.

"The truth, we have no time for sugar-coating," he replied.

Willow began, "well maybe I should go with you, y'know soften the blow and all that-"

"You have to face Kennedy sometime Tabitha, but we have no time for drama," Nicholas concluded interrupting her and speeding off toward the prison.

"Great, nice, Thanks for the vote of confidence!" Willow called. She released a breath she didn't know she was holding and entered the manor. She entered the main hall and found Buffy, Faith, Xander and Giles loading up on weapons. They paused when they saw her. Buffy flung her arms around her best friend.

"Will, you're okay," Buffy stated into Willow's hair.

"Aren't I usually?" Willow said a little confused.

"I got a little worried when Cordy said you'd gone to Wolfram & Hart," Buffy admitted.

"Sorry I just…just had to get away," Willow said. "Has anybody seen Kennedy?"

"She got outa here about an hour ago, she's probably patrolling," Xander informed. Willow nodded a little disappointed. They had left things in an awful state and she felt she had to fix it soon.

"Dawn, go with Willow and get the supplies for the banishing spell," Buffy ordered.

"Banishing spell?" Willow asked puzzled.

"Dawn?" Buffy sighed.

"I'll fill her in," Dawn offered. Willow set off up the stairs with the youngest Summer's sister while Giles, Faith and Xander headed out the front door. A group of girls had gathered over the 1st floor landing to see what all the fuss was about. Rona was amongst them. Shortly after Willow and Dawn descended the stairs and headed out the door.

"Rona, hold down the fort while we're gone?" Buffy asked.

"Sure," Rona nodded. Buffy shut the huge door tight behind her and together they all headed down the narrow private road toward the warehouse. They turned into the all too familiar alleyway that lead to the warehouse. Faith and Buffy approached the fence first. The parking lot was still absent cars and full of squatters; however the doorman from the other night was nowhere to be seen. But there was defiantly somebody in the warehouse as the windows where masked in a dim yellow glow.

"What's the plan B? We go in gun's blazin' or we go for the rooftop stealth approach?" Faith asked.

"Defiantly the rooftop. Since our last encounter I'm betting Calvin's buffed up his security," Buffy guessed.

"No more knives for the lackies," Faith agreed.

"Or," Willow began. The sound of a voice that wasn't their own made the Slayer's jump out of their skin. "We go in the front door and I use a little spell of mine to disable the guns?"

"Geeze Red! Don't sneak up on people in dark warehouses!" Faith said startled.

"Sorry," Willow said.

"Can you work it? It would seriously save us some time," Buffy asked.

"Yeah, just get me closer, I do the spell, you guys burst in all Kung-foo'y, grab Calvin, banish the demon and presto, day's work done," Willow said. Buffy and Faith agreed with Willow's plan and so the five of them made their way to the entrance to the warehouse.

"Okay Will, you're up," Xander said. Willow began to chant as she held a crystal in her hand that began to glow.

"Done. But I'm not liking these dark mojo vibes from inside" Willow informed.

Buffy, Faith, Giles, Xander and Willow entered the warehouse making a dramatic entrance as the double doors swung apart. Groups of gang members fell silent as our heroes set foot in the structure. Calvin, who was sitting at the back of the warehouse on his usual un-hygienic yellow sofa, flicked his cigarette on the ground and stood up to stomp it out. The rest of the gang-members got to their feet too and reached for their weapons. It was obvious they had prepared for this. "Well, if it isn't the little trespasser, her knight in shining armour, and a red-head, old man and pirate boy," Calvin spat with an evil smirk. "You've really got me cornered here," he said sarcastically.

"Oh goodie, the witty banter portion of the fight. Can we just get to the kicking your ass to prison already?" Buffy retaliated.

"The cops already got the bitch that killed that guy," Calvin said proudly.

"We both know you're lying," Buffy replied.

"You said Chris shot the bullet that killed that guy Calvin!" the woman that had spoken out against Calvin the other night chimed again.

"She did!" Calvin lied.

"Na, your boy here shot Kyle Humphrey dead in his apartment and let Chris take the blame," Faith said. The gang members erupted in chatter.

"What? You're gunna believe this white trash hooker over your own family?" Calvin persuaded. However he only managed to persuade a portion of the gang members as a minority left the warehouse with no intention of coming back.

"We don't have to fight," Giles called from the back of the warehouse, "just come quietly, turn yourself in and we'll get you a good lawyer," Giles persuaded.

"It's better than the deal I got," Faith added.

"I ain't goin' to juvy. Besides I got friends in high places," Calvin smiled. Buffy's eyes where sent to the ceiling where she found a piece of the upper level of the warehouse that survived the fall. On top of the lucky piece of structure stood a hooded figure surrounded by dark mist. Buffy caught Willow's eye and she too set eyes on the demon. Willow began the banishing ritual by setting out an assortment of candles and incense on the ground. The demon mumbled something in a foreign language and the eyes of the gang members turned black. They suddenly charged for our heroes with all intent of killing them.  
Calvin bolted for the back door, his mind still his own.  
Faith knocked a knife out of a woman's hands and scissor kicked her to the south wall, she then ducked an attack by a bald black man wielding a metal pole and knocked him to the ground. One gang member pointed his gun toward Giles but as soon as he found his target the metal of the gun became scorching hot causing him to drop it, allowing Giles to tackle him to the ground.  
The Troxen felt the power of Willow's spell and knew exactly what was happening to him. In a blind state of worry the Troxen conjured two balls of dark energy. Buffy, who had just taken down an angry woman with a nasty looking knife, felt a sudden feeling of suction. She couldn't move.  
Faith who was on the other side of the room felt it too; they both made eye contact with each other. The suctioning feeling stopped and the Slayer's lost their balance and tumbled to the ground. The dark balls of energy where filled with a brilliant bright light. The Troxen began to laugh but the incense in Willow's ritual began to burn, paralysing him for the time being before he could grasp the balls in his cloven hands.  
Buffy shakily got to her feet and shook off the weird feeling she had. A man in a letterman jacket lunged for her, she ducked his attack and twirled so that she could successfully back-hand punch him to the face. The man tumbled to the floor but the pain Buffy felt in her fist was one she hadn't felt before. She grabbed her sore first in her other hand and looked around for Faith who was being wailed on by three woman with chains and poles.

"Banish thee from my mind, take thee from my sight, devour thee from my thoughts, capture the darkness and bring light," Willow said in conclusion to her ritual. The Troxen was encased in fine white light, the balls of energy where sent surging back into Buffy and Faith making them feel like their usual selves again, the gang members stopped attacking and instead fled the warehouse all while the Troxen began to ooze and melt to the ground below crying out in high pitch screeches. The gang approached the murky liquid of the Troxen and stood around it.

"Yuck…demon gunk," Buffy uttered.

"I'm gunna, go get Calvin, he can't be far," Faith sounded as she set off in the direction Calvin bolted in.  
Buffy was about to turn her back on the Troxen juice when suddenly a swirling silver portal opened on the north wall near the upper level wreckage. The scoobies all dived out of the way as what was left of the Troxen was sucked into the Neatherrealm. An eerie voice echoed from the Troxen sludge as it was dragged from the floor. It laughed devilishly before echoing,

**"You're going to wish you had died tonight, his darkness travel's faster than the light. When I return to this world, your name will be but a burnt page in history!"**

Buffy watched as the silver portal swallowed the Troxen whole and disappeared without a trace. Everybody stood and watched the place where the Troxen had disappeared in minutes of awkward silence.

"I love it when they clean up after themselves," Buffy uttered to break the silence.

**Chapter 5**

**"You're going to wish you had died tonight, his darkness travel's faster than the light. When I return to this world, your name will be but a burnt page in history!"**

The dying cry of the Troxen echoed in Buffy's mind. It hadn't even been six month since the biggest battle of her life and already she was getting apocalyptic threats from demons. She felt anger and exhaustion. She thought she was passed this, the constant threat of the Hellmouth had haunted her for seven years and she then realised that this new Hellmouth might just have promising years of loss and chaos ahead for her. Giles approach the debris where the portal had opened and felt around to be certain it was properly sealed. Willow collected her recyclable supplies while Xander and Buffy stood still. He approached her cautiously and placed a warm hand on her shoulder. He knew what she was feeling because he was feeling it too. There was no need for words because they hadn't been created for the emotion the scoobies were feeling.

Faith caught up with Calvin as he was trying to bail over a barbed wire fence. She caught him by the ankle and hauled him to the ground. He wriggled but was no match for her. She held his hands behind his back and led him back into the building. Giles decided that they would tie him up for the time being and when they got back to the manor they would have Nick take him to the police. They each in turn left the warehouse a little worse for ware. "Any idea what the Troxen meant? As death threats go that was pretty vague," Willow asked Giles.

"I s-shall behin researching when we get back but i-I'm afraid not," Giles replied.

"Whatever it is, we can handle it, right Buff?" Xander hummed.

"Sure," Buffy said unconvincingly as the rest of the troop, including Faith, exchanged a worried look. "A-any idea why my hand is throbbing Will?" Buffy asked.

"Don't know, my best guess would be that it took your powers somehow," Willow suggested.

"It could do that?" Faith asked.

"The Slayer lineage is fragile after what we did, it's not exactly impossible, any other demon or witch would have failed but Troxen's are powerful breeds," Giles informed. "My question is why would a Troxen want the powers of A Slayer, it's not in their nature to covet good magic," Giles sounded.

"Maybe because it was afraid of this _thing_ that's coming," Willow suggested.

"Let's just get home and get me some ice," Buffy sounded.

Willow edged toward the back of the crowd and out of earshot of the gang. She took her cell phone out of her back pocket and dialled Kennedy's number and held it to her ear. A low beeping noise sounded from her phone, she looked down at the screen.  
_Call Ignored_.  
"Hi, you've reached Kennedy, I can't come to the phone right now but leave me a message and I'll get back to you," said Kennedy's answering machine.

"Hey, it's me, uh Willow, we need to talk. I don't wanna fight anymore, I'm coming home, I'll see you soon," Willow said before catching up with her friends.

Buffy opened the door to the manor and found Nicholas pacing vigorously across the room with a relaxed Chris sitting in one of the dining room chairs next to Cordelia. Giles exchanged words with Nicholas briefly before he left to go to his car and Giles headed toward the library. Buffy and Faith exchanged a tired look when they realised they were going to have to have the Slayer speech with Chris. However Faith just shrugged and headed up stairs leaving Buffy rolling her eyes. She sat down in the chair opposite Chris. Xander headed toward the kitchen and Cordelia followed him whereas Willow bolted up the stairs to talk with Kennedy.  
Buffy and Chris sat in the main hall alone in the echo of silence.  
Buffy began, "Chris-"

"Cordelia gave me the speech already, about my destiny and all that," Chris said interrupting her.

"She did," Buffy said with a furrowed brow.

"Yeaaaahh," Chris chimed, "look I appreciate what you guys did for me, I really do…but this isn't me," she said.

"It wasn't me either, I was homecoming queen, the most popular girl in school, I hung out with all the cool people and did what they did until I was chosen," Buffy argued.

"The way Cordelia tells it, back then it was just you, you in the whole world," Chris said.

"True-"

"But that's not how it is anymore is it? Look, I'm new to the whole Slayer thing but I've been looking out for myself on the streets since I was eleven, Buffy. I've known about vampires for a _long_ time and I'm still alive and kicking. There's nothing you can teach me here that I don't already know," Chris replied.

"We can teach you to be a better fighter, learn skills and weapons and-"

"Buffy, I can't stay here. I can't play the role of school girl by day, but monster hunter by night. For me it's the second part of that equation 24/7. I have a family out there, we look out for eachother-"

"And just how many of your _'family members'_ came to visit you while you were in prison?" Buffy jibed. Chris became lost for words. "I'm sorry Chris but I think staying here, at least for a while, is your best option to learn to live with the powers that come with being a Slayer," Buffy added.

"Okay so I'm a little stronger, little faster, I'll get by," Chris argued. Buffy looked at her sternly.

"You had a dream the other night didn't you, one where you were here but not really here, there was a woman, and men, and vampires-"

"How do you know that?" Chris asked wide-eyed.

"Because we're all connected and by staying here you'll learn about this stuff _and _more!" Buffy encouraged.

Chris still wasn't convinced. She was defiantly curious about what was happening to her but she was devoted to the life she'd led over the past years.

"Tell y'what, show up for training ever Wednesday and on weekends and you've got a deal," Buffy offered.

"Yeah," Chris agreed. Chris got up to leave the manor and as she got to the door Buffy called to her.

"So how'd you come up with Chris anyway?" Buffy asked.

"What d'you mean?" Chris asked.

"It's not your real name is it?" Buffy asked knowingly.

"It was my brother name," Chris said in a way that let Buffy know she'd never told anybody that before.

"So what's yours?" Buffy pushed.

"Patience," Chris told.

"I'll see you Wednesday morning, Patience," Buffy smiled. Chris nodded before shutting the door tight behind her.

During Chris and Buffy's conversation Willow had eagerly bolted up to her room to find Kennedy. She curled her hand around the door knob and pushed. "Kennedy?" she called. She got no answer. "You in here?" she called again but got no reply for a second time. Willow's smile faded as she checked the bathroom in their room and the one down the hall but still no sign of her. Willow's gut began to wretch as she shakily placed her hand on the wardrobe door. She slid it open and found all of Kennedy's belongings gone except for a glove and a scarf discarded where her shoes used to be. On a yellow piece of paper next to the scarf stood a note. Willow picked it up and as her tears flowed down her cheek she sat on the bed and read it.

_'Sorry.'_

Willow held the note to her chest with one hand while the other grasped her mouth  
as she lay back on the bed, curled up on Kennedy's side…and wept.

Meanwhile Xander was pouring Cordelia and himself some coffee in the kitchen. He glanced at his watch and saw that it was nearly midnight. "Here," he said as he handed it to her.

"Thanks," she said as she took it gladly and sipped. Xander moved to sit on the counter when he spotted Cordelia's packed suitcase ready by the back door. He chocked a bit on his coffee in shock.

"You're leaving?" he asked her in-between coughs.

"I was hoping for a quiet exit but, yeah," she replied.

"When?" he asked.

"Pretty much now," she replied.

"Well at least wait till morning I mean it's night out and besides, Hellmouth's are dangerous places," he smiled.

"I remember," she smiled back. "I was gunna catch a cab to the airport from that place on Hamilton Street?"

"C'mon, I'll walk you," he invited.

Xander carried Cordelia's bags for her as they walked to the cab lot on Hamilton. He loaded her bags in the trunk and gave her a hug. "So where are you gunna go?" he asked sadly.

"California, I hear there's a certain vampire with a soul who's lost his way," she winked.

"Angel's a lucky guy," Xander smiled. Cordelia opened the cab door and was about to get in but stopped at the sound of Xander voice.

"So now can you tell me why you came to find us?" Xander begged. At that moment a petite woman bumbed into Xander and he spilled his coffee all down her blouse. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry," he stuttered.

"Don't worry about it I should have been watching were I was going," she said as she dodged him again and continued down the road.

"A Xander Harris without a woman in his heart and arms is only acceptable in High School," Cordelia beamed before climbing into the car and speeding off into the distance.

Xander smiled enthusiastically and thought to himself _I'm gunna miss that girl'_ before catching up with the coffee stained woman. "Excuse me," he said to get her attention, "Hi, I'm Xander," he said outstretching his hand.

"Julie," the woman replied taking his hand gladly.

From inside the cab Cordelia beamed to herself but jumped at the sound of voice from the seat next to her. "So," Kennedy began, "Where are we going?"

"California," Cordelia said as she caught her breath.

"Got room for one more?" Kennedy asked.

Hector was sitting alone in his office. Wolfram & Hart had closed hours ago but he had only just gotten out of a meeting with an Angry Chaos demon he demanded a retraction on a contract. He pressed a button on the phone on his desk. "Can I get a cup of coffee?" he asked his assistant through the phone. Moment's later Amy Madison entered Hector's office holding a white mug full of luxurious black coffee.

"Here you go boss," she said as she placed the mug on his desk.

"Thank you Amy," Hector smiled.

Authors Note: I wish I could give you a small summary of the next episode but truth be told I haven't thought of it yet. It will defiantly contain some Amy mischief, I'll develop Xander and Julie's relationship, maybe she's a demon, or maybe she's human, who knows! There'll be some Willow heart ache too. Sorry about discarding Kennedy for the time being, I was just getting kind of bored of her character but her arc isn't finished just yet. Please keep reading.

Thank you to everybody who reviewed and added this story to their alerts.

:-) x.


	10. Episode 10: Tradition

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 10  
Tradition

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse, I am just a fan.

Summary: It's that time of year when monsters and ghouls take the night off from their busy schedule of maim and murder to reflect and relax, or so they're supposed to. When Buffy is called into Dawn's school to discuss her younger sister's academic progress…or the lack there of, Buffy is tricked into chaperoning the High School Halloween dance. Dawn persuades Willow to take her costume shopping when they spot Amy in the local magic shop. Meanwhile Xander finds himself a job at the hardware store when Julie comes in with a minor plumbing fiasco.

**Chapter 1 [-]**

Since Chris, four more Slayers had joined Slayer central and settled in quite easily. Chris attended all the training but was yet to go out in the field with the other girls, she claimed she never had the time or that something had come up but Buffy knew her '_friends_' didn't approve of Chris's activities outside their circle. She'd agreed to keep her _identity_ a secret from them so Buffy could understand their frustration. With Andrew back on his feet meals had become less of an issue, he claimed to have missed the kitchen and that it was part of his _redemption_.  
The last week had seen the many comings and goings of groups of construction workers moving through the manor with wooden beams, pipes, plaster board, flooring and many tins of pasty white paint. Nicholas had finally persuaded Wolfram & Hart to speed up the renovation process in the Mansion's Basement.

The builders had begun the renovation on Monday and by Friday it was up to Giles to provide the finishing touches like training equipment and safety mats galore. Buffy had begun training the girls Saturday morning's while Faith took over Sundays and Vi, Rona, Simone and Lucy took over Wednesday afternoons. Buffy had to admit that the manor was different without Kennedy, quieter maybe, but noticeably different. She was the potential who had been with the scoobies the longest and was the best possible teacher for the girls, she could relate to them a lot easier than Buffy or Faith could. However the girls weren't the only people suffering. Willow had been through different stages over the past week, the first being staying in bed with Dawn's many tray's of comfort food and the most recent being the peppy '_I'm fine_' attitude. Xander was just glad she was eating the manor's supply of cookie dough and not destroying the world.  
Buffy set her alarm early on Saturday morning. She'd gotten a call from Dawn's principal the night before to schedule a meeting about Dawn's plummeting grades and lack of progress. Willow had offered to take her but the principal requested Dawn's legal guardian.  
Buffy lazily descended the entrance hall steps in her _Hello Kitty_ pyjamas. She opened the long red curtains that hung over the windows to find that the sun was barely up. After patrol Buffy liked to sit at the window behind the dining table as it was the one that overlooked the cliff-side. It was a nice place to think while everybody else was counting sheep upstairs. Her private inner monologue was interrupted as Andrew burst out of the old closed door corridor with his hands flailing about in the air in anger. He was shouting, in what Buffy assumed, was sci-fi curse words at the top of his lungs. "Andrew!" Buffy called. "What the _hell_ are you doing? Everybody's still asleep!" Buffy added in a hushed tone. Andrew's face went from red to pink to peach in the blink of an eye.

"I'm sorry, but she's doing it again!" Andrew replied angrily.

"Who's doing what?" Buffy asked.

"Magic mama in there!" he shouted.

"You mean Willow?" Buffy asked.

"No Glenda, the good witch of the east," Andrew said sarcastically but he quickly took it back after a stern look from Buffy.

"What's she doing?" Buffy asked.

"Everybody knows I pull my weight around here by making delicious yet healthy treats for our troops, and I wake up this morning ready to do my daily duty to find her wearing **MY** apron and stove mittens!" Andrew said angrily.

"Your stove mittens?" Buffy laughed.

Andrew began, "so not the issue! You don't see Lex Luther setting up shop in the Fortress of Solitude! Or The Joker in the Bat-Cave! Or-" Buffy interrupted him by grabbing an apple out of the fruit bowl on the dinner table and shoving it into his mouth. She walked passed him toward the kitchen. "Hey!" he shouted back, biting angrily into the apple.  
She pushed on the door and it creaked open. She skidded along a rug toward the kitchen and found Willow scurrying around the pots and pans.

"Will?" Buffy called.

"Hey Buffy," Willow greeted excitedly. When Willow turned around Buffy spotted Andrew's _'KISS THE COOK_' apron.

"You're up early…again," Buffy stated.

"Yeah well y'know what they say, 'The early worm calls the worm'…or was it 'The timely bird gets the…' I don't know," Willow laughed as she took four waffles out of the toaster.

"I just ran into Andrew," Buffy hummed.

"Yeah what's up with that? If you ask me, sexual frustration," Willow uttered casually.

"Uh, yeah, I guess that's a…possibility," Buffy stammered awkwardly. "Will?-"

"So how come you're up so early?" Willow asked interrupting her.

"I've got a meeting with Dawn and her principal in an hour, Dawn's upstairs getting ready," Buffy informed. Willow turned and eyed Buffy's choice of attire. "And I should probably go and do the same," Buffy saved.

"I think its safe to say that Headmistress Fischer won't take you very seriously in your pink and fuzzy _Hello Kity_ pj's," Willow smiled. Buffy smiled.

"Hey Will?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah?" she replied.

"How're you holdin' up? Y'know after-"

"Fine," Willow interrupted. "Lets just say I've been a lot worse…I'm just trying to keep busy," Willow added solemnly. Before Buffy could reply Dawn walked into the kitchen wearing a white vest top under a black un-buttoned shirt and jeans.

"Buffy we're gunna be late and you're not even dressed," Dawn warned.

"Well I wouldn't have anything to be late _for_ if you paid more attention in class," Buffy jibed. Dawn looked her older sister up and down. "Fine, I'll go get dressed," Buffy said with her hands in surrender. Buffy dodged passed Dawn and left the kitchen.

"You want something to eat Dawny?" Willow asked.

"I'll just grab something from school, thanks though," Dawn replied.

"Kay," Willow smiled. "It's almost half seven, y'wanna help me get this food to the dinner table?" Willow asked.

"Sure," Dawn replied. Dawn pushed one metal trolley of pancakes and waffles while Willow carried a tray of milk, butter and toast. "Having school on a Saturday should be illegal," Dawn said as they made their way to the entrance hall. "I have this theory that my principal is evil…I would totally be okay with it if Buffy killed her," Dawn sounded causing Willow so smile for real and not just to fool her friends.

When Buffy got back downstairs, dressed to impress, her and Dawn left the manor and took Giles's car to Cleveland High. The campus was impressive, big and coloured bold, trash free hallways and none of that technical crap, still the good old fashioned chalkboard. Dawn directed her sister to the principal's office. Outside it however, was a long queue of parents and students all looking anxious. Buffy and Dawn took a seat at he end of the queue and had nothing to do except twiddle their fingers in their laps.  
After several minutes a fairly tall boy in a red plaid shirt and pants slammed the door to the principal's office and stormed down the corridor crying in anger and clenching his fists. "I guess Headmistress Fischer makes Snyder look like a ball of sunshine," Buffy stated.

"Huh?" Dawn asked confused.

"Never mind," Buffy uttered as her eyes followed the angry boy turning the corner. Buffy furrowed her brow in concern.

* * *

The boy uttered angry words under his breath all the way out to the quad. He kicked over numerous potted plants and tore down flyers on the school bulletin board. He sat on a bench and held his head in his hands. "Luke!" another boy of the same age called from across the quad. Luke didn't hear him however until the second boy called to him too.

"Luke buddy!" he shouted. The two boys sat either side of Luke. "How'd it go?" the second boy asked.

"I got suspended," Luke informed.

"Man, that's harsh," the first boy told.

"That's why we're not gonna' let her get away with it," Luke said angrily.

"Whoa man," the second boy began, "I'm done with that voodoo crap, I mean I'm still getting nose bleeds and don't get me started on my bathroom patterns-"

"Johnny shut-up!" Luke called.

* * *

Back in the hallway Buffy and Dawn had reached the front of the line. Buffy had adjusted her hair countless times in frustration. "Miss Summers?" the principal's assistant said with her head hanging outside the doorway. "Headmistress Fischer will see you now," the assistant smiled nervously. Dawn and Buffy exchanged a look before getting up and anxiously walking into the office. The walls in the office were painted a dark green and on them hung four or five University degrees and one large picture of a Labrador in a park. On the back wall was a book shelf littered in novels and text books that seemed to be organised alphabetically. In front of the bookcase was a large mahogany desk with numerous photo's of the same Labrador, a coffee mug and a laptop computer.  
An eerily thin woman with messy short black hair and glasses that teetered on the edge of her hooked nose sat behind the desk and didn't take her gaze off of the laptop screen during the time Buffy and Dawn entered the room and took a seat in front of the desk. She wore a grey suit over a brown blouse that didn't do anything for her un-naturally thin figure.

Buffy couldn't bare the tension in the room and so opened her mouth to speak and maybe get the Vulture Woman to look her in the eye. "Mrs. Fischer-"

"**Miss** Fischer," the principal snapped quickly with her eyes still on the screen.

_'What a surprise'_ Buffy thought to herself. The principal finally took her gaze from the laptop and put it into Buffy's eyes. Her eyes were sharp and icy; they seemed to take all the warmth out of Buffy's body, she shot her gaze to the ground instead.

"Miss Summers, I trust you understand why I have asked you here this morning," the principal opened.

"Yes," Buffy replied.

Headmistress Fischer began, "At Cleveland High we aim to introduce a safe and nurturing environment for all our students. Dawn is a…was…a quiet student who kept to herself, handed in all her homework and never caused anybody a bother. But as of late her grades have seen a decline, she's not handing in her assignments and she's talking back in class. Tell me about her home life."

"Well Dawn d-does all of her chores, she uh keeps a-a steady curfew, is l-looked after, it's w-warm and n-nurturing and did I mention she does all her chores?" Buffy smiled.

"I see," the principal hummed as she typed something into her computer. "My personal view on the issue is that Dawn's rebellion is the result of her relations with a senior boy, Chase Abrams?" Buffy's eyes widened as she turned to Dawn.

"You told me that was a one time thing," Buffy said. Dawn refused to reply or make eye contact.

"Mr Abrams does not have the best reputation and I think it would be in Dawn's best interest if you were to keep her away from the boy, even if it is for the time being," Fischer suggested sternly.

"I'll get right on it," Buffy replied, "trust me," she said with a glare at her sibling.

"**What**?" Dawn sounded. "Y-you can't do that," she added.

"You lied to me, you are in no position to be making orders young lady," Buffy scolded.

"_Young Lady_?" Dawn mocked. "Buffy you, you just don't know him like I do," Dawn informed. Buffy decided to ignore this.

"However Miss Summers my watchful eye only stretches so far, I can't look out for her every minute of every day during school hours," Fischer added.

"Of course," Buffy replied.

"There are other children in my care."

"I completely understand."

"And I know you will do everything you can to ensure you sisters educational progress."

"Absolutely."

"Great! Then it's settled, you will chaperone Monday nights Halloween dance, the doors open at seven," Fischer beamed with a smile that seemed to reach her ears.

"Wait, chaperone?" Buffy objected.

"Did I stutter?" Fischer grinned.

"No way!" Dawn disagreed.

"I will see the both of you Monday," Fischer concluded. Before Buffy could object, Fischer's' assistant was ushering them out of the office and into the hallway.

* * *

Meanwhile in the quad, "Kevin, you in?" Luke asked.

"I don't know dude, Jonny's right, it could get heavy," Kevin, the first boy, uttered.

"C'mon it'll be cool and its not like she doesn't deserve it, I'll do all the work but I can't do it alone," Luke persuaded. Kevin and Johnny exchanged a look.

"Whatever man but if this gets hairy-"

"It won't, I promise," Luke beamed.

* * *

Buffy and Dawn arrived back at the manor just in time. Saturday's were Buffy's training day and all the girls had been waiting to begin. Even Chris who sat on the dining room table with Alicia and Kate had been waiting to start. "This doesn't get you off the hook, I shouldn't even be letting you go to the dance but now that I have to I don't see why I should be getting punished, we'll talk later," Buffy informed. Dawn stormed up the stairs toward her room.  
When Dawn reached the fifth floor she looked down the corridor and found Willow with a mop and bucket cleaning the balcony. A light bulb switched on in Dawn's mind.

"Hey Dawny," Willow greeted as she mopped around a potted plant.

"Hey, what're you doing right now?" Dawn asked.

"Nothing really, can you believe we've been living her for months and nobodies thought to mop the floor of the balcony?" Willow sounded.

"Yeah, sure, crazy. Listen, what would you say to taking me costume shopping for the dance?" Dawn asked. Willow's mop stopped stroking the ground for a brief second.

"Oh I don't know Dawn, I mean I'm crazy busy here," Willow lied.

"C'mon you just said you weren't doing anything," Dawn persuaded.

"What about Buffy? Aren't you grounded or something because of your meeting?" Willow hoped.

"Big misunderstanding, in fact it was Buffy who sent me to ask you," Dawn lied. Willow was out of excuses.

"I'll get my coat," Willow smiled falsely.

Willow and Dawn descended the main stairs into the entrance hall and found Xander alone watching T.V in the living room to the right. "You guys heading out?" he asked.

"Willow's taking me costume shopping for the Dance," Dawn smiled.

"In the city?" Xander asked. Willow nodded. "Mind if I tag along? It'll give me a reason to turn off ESPN and get a job," Xander added.  
The three of them took Giles car into the city. Willow seemed to loosen up, she was worried that not being constantly doing something, like vacuuming or dish washing, her mind would wander over to Kennedy but Dawn and Xander kept her distracted. They parked in the parking lot of the city centre and went their separate ways. Dawn and Willow ventured into a boutique and Dawn headed straight for the Halloween costumes. She picked costumes like, Dead School Girl, Cat, Superwoman and like her older sister, a 17th century noblewoman dress. "I thought you were too old for Halloween?" Willow winked.

"I am, I just-," Dawn stuttered defensively.

"Or did a certain boy change your mind?" Willow smiled.

"You could say that," Dawn laughed. Dawn tried on some real, for lack of a better term, _slutty_ outfits that made even Willow's eyebrows rise.

"Y'know Dawn, for my sophomore Halloween dance I went as a bed sheet with two holes poked through for eyes," Willow informed.

"And I seem to recall the number you wore under that bed sheet," Dawn retaliated.

"Good point," Willow admitted.

"What d'you think of this one?" Dawn asked. She pulled back the changing room curtain and revealed a knee length purple and black dress with a stereotypical witches hat and elbow length gloves. "Well?" Dawn asked.

"Do you want a broomstick, cauldron and pointy wart infected fingers to go with it?" Willow asked.

"I'll keep looking," Dawn replied. Eventually Willow and Dawn decided the Witches outfit was the best choice and so they paid the lady behind the counter and left the store. They walked down the street, arms linked, towards the coffee house near the magic shop. Dawn's eyes found those of Luke, the boy who was suspended from school, whom she had seen earlier. He pushed the door of the magic shop open and went in. "He goes to my school, he was suspended this morning," Dawn told.

"Well this _is_ the Hellmouth, maybe he's a warlock?" Willow suggested.

"Maybe, but he seemed pretty pissed this morning, maybe we should go over and check on him?" Dawn suggested when she saw him pick up a jar of chickens feet through the store window.

"Sure," Willow agreed. They crossed the street and stood at the window. Ernie, the man whom Willow had partially blinded a month or so previous, was behind the counter serving an average height brunette woman.

"Willow," Dawn said loudly and terrified.

"Dawn what is it? What's wrong?" Willow asked frantically. She followed Dawn's shaky stare through the window. The brunette woman had turned to leave the store and made eye-contact with Willow. "Amy?" Willow chimed.

**Chapter 2 [-]**

Xander reached a street corner. He'd been here before, months ago, but the reality of the memory was still fluctuating in his brain. They hadn't lived in the manor long and he was still reeling from the death of his beloved Anya. Actually he _still_ was, a moment never went by when Xander wasn't thinking about the nights he'd spent with her, the mornings waking up with her, teaching her to play black-jack and losing to her at scrabble. He was over his blaming of his two best friends. He used to have dreams, he'd be standing outside Sunnydale High with debris falling all around him, Turok-Han's galore escaping into the big wide world and his friends standing by, just watching. He'd spot Anya through a broken window fighting for her life, taking blows from Bringers in all directions, he'd try to run to her side, to aid her, save her, protect her, until Buffy and Willow would pin him to the ground, he'd wriggle like a mouse in a cat's grasp but he could never escape. He'd wake up in a blistering sweat amongst empty bottles at the moment the bringers' knife took the life of his bunny phobic soul mate. But I'm getting off topic, he'd gone through a bad time with his drinking and the off-license down the road supported his bad habit. He'd fell asleep on the bench outside the hardware store, were he was now standing, only to be awoken by troublesome kids, calling him a drunk and shouting a multitude of abuse that he defiantly deserved for how he'd spoken to Willow moments later.  
He'd thought about asking for a job at the hardware store as a last resort if he couldn't find a construction company to take him on. Unfortunately worse had come to worse and there he was, on the step of _Lou's Hardware_. He took a deep breath in, he wasn't hoping for miracles, (what self-respecting customer would go to a guy with an eye-patch for D.I.Y advice?), but the _HELP WANTED _sign had been in the store window long enough to figure out that the owner was most possibly desperate. He released his breath and pushed the door open. The roof of the door collided with a small bell that rung throughout the shop.  
Upon entrance in the shop he was attacked by the musty smell of a construction site, only magnified. The shelves were so high they would have intimidated Godzilla, the floor hadn't been cleaned since opening, the ceiling was home to a colony of flies that buzzed around in strange patterns, the walls were probably once a bold brown colour but had decayed into pale beige and then there was the man behind the counter at the back. "Hey Fella, if you can't find what you're looking for I'll be right with ya!" he called. He had a full head of white hair cut short, his face had wrinkled with age and his eyes were brown and warm. He wore a brown shirt and bright, light blue jeans. In front of the counter was a long queue of customers tapping there feet, twiddling their fingers and one guy was humming the theme tune to _Will & Grace_.

"Actually I-uh-I'm here about the _HELP WANTED_ sign in the window?" Xander called. Xander walked up to the register so as to speak with the owner while he dealt with his many customers. He guessed a Hardware store on a Hellmouth brought in some serious cash.

"You wanna work _here_?" the owner asked.

"Well," he began, "yeah," he lied. The owner looked Xander up and down and stared for an extra few seconds at his eye-patch. "Look, you're my last hope, I got a lot'a experience with construction and I would really be able good at this job. Look passed the eye-patch, someone has to," Xander persuaded.

"You been practicin' that long?" the owner smiled.

"I may have spent a few embarrassing moments in the bathroom mirror," Xander admitted.

"Alright kid I'll give you a shot, you last the day and you've got the job," the owner offered.

"Wait, you want me to start now?" asked Xander puzzled.

"Is that a problem?" the owner replied.

"No! Of course not," Xander lied thinking about Willow and Dawn who would be waiting for him.

"Good, names Lou," the owner took Xander's hand and shook it while he handed an angry women her purchase.

"Xander," he introduced. Lou ducked under the counter and threw a pair of keys at Xander as he passed him.

"Where're you going?" Xander asked as confused as the stores many customers.

"I got my granddaughters piano recital in half an hour, store closes at four on weekends, lock up when you're done," Lou said as he opened the door to leave.

"Wait!" Xander called but his shout was drowned out by the ringing bell above the door. Xander turned to the long angry queue of customers and smiled weakly.

* * *

Meanwhile back at the magic shop Willow had just set eyes on the one person that still made her skin crawl in fear, Amy Madison. She'd seen Amy last year which turned out to be a disaster, Willow had made the mistake of trusting her then, trusted that she was now practicing with the UC Sunnydale Wicca Group and was back on the right path, until Willow grew a penis and almost shot Kennedy in Buffy's backyard.  
Amy stood just as star struck as Willow as they held eye contact through the window. Willow thought Amy suddenly reappearing had to have something with Kennedy leaving her and began to think up a million conspiracy theories. However none of the ones her brain could think of seemed to make sense. Willow dropped her bags on the sidewalk and headed for the entrance to the magic shop. Dawn dropped her bags too and grabbed Willow by the wrist. "Willow, no," Dawn warned.

"I just want to talk to her," Willow argued trying to pull away.

"Yeah you say that now but as soon as you exchange a few words you two'll end up casting each other into walls. It's not safe," Dawn persuaded.

"It won't come to that," Willow replied.

"Willow, forgive me if I want to avoid another demon chase and car crash because that's what happened last time!" Dawn cried.

"But I'm not just some witch like I was then Dawn-"

"Willow you never have been just _some_ witch! Trust me when I say going in there is going to end badly," Dawn persuaded. Willow completely ignored this and shrugged off Dawn's grasp.

Willow magically opened the door to the magic shop; it slammed the wall behind it and sent a loud bang throughout the store. Amy backed up a little and dropped her purchase on the ground. The magic shop itself was decorated in cheesy cliché Halloween decorations that littered and obscured the walls.

Amy folded her arms comfortably across her chest. Luke, the boy from Dawn's school, was speaking to Ernie, the shopkeeper, at the back of the store. He held in his hand a jar of purple liquid and a dusty old book. He looked at Willow with fear as he tucked the book under his jacket. Willow walked to Amy without showing any fear.  
Dawn scurried about outside to pick up all their bags when she burst into the magic shop causing Luke to conceal the purple liquid in his backpack.

"My God Willow It's _so_ good to see you," Amy said as she took a hand away from her chest and used it to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"What're you doing here Amy?" Willow asked point blank.

"Still on the magics too I see," Amy smiled approvingly.

"**What** are you doing here Amy?" Willow repeated.

"This is a magic shop, I'm a witch, I'm sure you can figure it out. Hey Dawn," Amy smiled. Dawn took a strong stance.

"I'm giving you one chance to _**get**_ out of the city, you're not welcome here," Willow ordered each word laced with venom.

"Uh I was here first? I work here I-I live here, if you don't like it you can go," Amy said as she handed Willow a business card. Willow snatched it from her hand.

_Amy Madison  
Assistant to the C.E.O  
Wolfram & Hart  
Attorney's at Law._

Dawn took the business card from Willow and gave it a glance over. "You work at Wolfram & Hart?" Dawn asked.

"It's right there in black and white," Amy sniggered.

"Why here? It can't be some coincidence you working in this Wolfram & Hart, there must be hundreds," Willow stated suspiciously.

"I guess its fate," Amy smiled.

"I doubt it," Willow spat. "I mean it Amy, you need to go," Willow warned.

"I'm not going anywhere," Amy replied with her eyes blackening. Willow advanced into Amy's space; she refused to be afraid of her anymore. "What? You think you can take me?"

"Let's see," Willow replied. Dawn jumped in the middle of the two powerful wicca's. Even a non-witch like herself, Dawn could feel the rivalling magics preparing for what would defiantly be a devastating fight.

"Okay, stepping in, playing junior watcher here, Willow we should go," Dawn pleaded.

"But it's not a question of can you take me, is it Willow? It's will you even try to?" Amy snarled.

"That's not me anymore," Willow replied.

"I mean even a doofus floating a pencil could feel the power you got a mile away, your whole rise to a higher power, goddess for a day. But big bad Willow is still in there, deep down, and she's crying to get out," Amy's words must have wiped Willow's mask of fearlessness straight from her face, "there, I know you can feel it, so I'll even let you make the first move, take your shot red," Amy sniggered.

Willow felt violated, to be emotionally ripped apart like that by somebody she despised made her guts wretch. She thought of making the first move, she had the incantation ready in her head, but if Amy was right, then that means the visions Hecate and Osiris showed to her weeks ago could be right too…she couldn't risk it. She couldn't put her friends in the place again.  
Willow backed off stepping towards Dawn.

"That's what I thought," Amy muttered.

"C'mon Dawn, we're leaving," Willow stated allowing Dawn to breathe a sigh of relief.

Willow and Dawn collected their bags and headed for the shop exit, slamming the door tight behind them. Amy looked around and caught eye-contact with Ernie the Shopkeeper. "Oh relax nothing got broken." She watched as Luke tried to casually leave the shop but made the mistake of rushing past the super wicca too fast. She caught a glimpse of the book hanging out the zipper of his backpack and the purple liquid in the jar under his jacket. She made a gesture with her hand and the book and jar came shooting towards her. She caught the book in her hands along with jar and thumbed through the text for the page Luke was looking at.

"Hey!" Luke complained but then he shut the hell up in memory of the confrontation he had just witnessed.

"This is pretty advanced stuff for a kid. You'll probably get yourself killed. Besides you stole the wrong creatures saliva, Gargoyle saliva is good for hexing but what you need is Harpy venom for this particular ritual," Amy advised.

"W-why're you helping me?" Luke asked confused.

"It's the school dance tomorrow right?" Amy asked. Luke nodded enthusiastically. "Well let's just say payback's a bitch," Amy smiled.

* * *

Xander had eventually dealt with the drama of the shop. For a while the queue seemed to just get longer but by about noon it had quietened down. He was wondering were Willow and Dawn had gotten to and why they weren't answering his calls. Then he remembered they were girls and shopping was their version of major league baseball. He took the precious time were the store was empty to wander around; it was a lot bigger on the inside than you would have thought from first glance outside. The back was full of crates of rope, spare pipes, spanners, nails you name it, the toilets where squeaky clean which was a surprise because of the fly ridden ceiling out in front.  
It felt, normal.  
He was back at the register by a quarter past noon and was in a world of his own. He was sitting with his back to the front door and stared enthusiastically at the ball game on the small T.V on a counter behind the front desk. "Excuse me," said a woman's voice from behind him. It wasn't that she'd been sneaking up on him or that she'd shouted it at him that made him jump as high as he did; he was just quite literally keeping his head in the game. He spun around to find an average height woman with long black hair wearing a white knee-length blouse, jeans and a black jacket.

"Julie?" Xander gasped.

"Coffee guy!" Julie smiled.

"Actually I go by Xander these days," he added smoothly.

"Right, I remember," she beamed. "You work here?"

"Just started actually, somebody has to put the bread on the table," he added.

"Your wife's a lucky woman," Julie said.

"_**No!**_ No wife, that whole bread thing-just a bad joke-single-newly-bad ending-and I'm rambling," he laughed awkwardly, "so what do you do?" he asked in an attempt to save his current awkward situation.

"I teach, at the High School," she smiled.

"Oh yeah? What d'ya teach?"

"Uh English," she told. "Actually just got back from a trip to Tibet with a friend and thought I'd get back into teaching."

"Ahh, so, what can I do for you?" Xander asked.

"Well I have a major plumbing apocalypse at my place and I was looking for Lou but I guess he's not here," Julie informed.

"Well I can probably take care of it for ya, got a lot of experience fixing stuff, trust me, shoot," Xander said.

"Well the pipe under my sink has been leaking and last night I wake up two sewage and god knows what else all over my kitchen floor, but the pipes I buy only hold for a few weeks."

"Well if you want I could come over and take a mould of the broken pipe and see what I could do about it?" Xander offered.

"You sure? Because that would make things a whole lot easier," she said. She whipped a piece of paper and a pen from her bag and wrote down her address. She slid it across the counter and Xander tucked it into his pocket.

"No problem, how about tomorrow night?" Xander asked.

"So you're not going _Trick or Treating_?" Julie joked.

"Naa I beat up this guy for putting an apple in my basket and now my face is on all the screens before Halloween," Xander joked too. Julie laughed.

"You're funny," she added.

"Well it's one of few but decent qualities," Xander smiled.

"So I'll see you tomorrow night?" Julie asked. "Come by around six?"

"See ya then," Xander beamed. Julie smiled over her shoulder as she left the store quietly closing the door behind her. Xander breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't been able to not think about Julie since he ran into her with Cordy last week and _now_ he was going to her apartment.  
He sat back down and turned to watch the game until he felt and heard the light vibrating of his cell phone in his pocket. He had four missed calls and one text from Willow.

_'911'_ it read.

**Chapter 3 [-]**

While Willow and Dawn were playing Russian Roulette with an old enemy and Xander was indulging in the opposite sex, Buffy was in her room getting ready for training. She grabbed an old pair of gym sneakers from the bottom of her wardrobe, a pair of grey sweat pants and a jacket to match. She dressed quickly and before she knew it she was heading down to the basement, she assumed Dawn was off sulking in her room but she was already late to begin training. She was eager to get started; she had the urge to hit hanging bags of cushion very hard after her meeting with Headmistress Fischer who managed to make her feel as small as a _Rice Krispie._ She pushed the old closed door open and headed down the hallway to the basement staircase passing girls in their gym attire who were waiting to get started. She descended the stairs and stepped into the enormous training room that made the stock room at the back of the magic shop look like a mere ball pit. It was filled with beams and pads and mats and weapons and even some instruction manuals on a small bookcase at the back.  
The girls who weren't on patrol were gathered down in the basement. They sat in their own circle of friends, Buffy furrowed her brow. The loud chatter of the girls echoed throughout the room.  
Chris had come down the basement stairs just after Buffy. "Sorry I'm late boss," she said, her long messy blonde hair trailing down her leather jacket. Kate had signalled her to come and sit with her, Alicia, Madison and Aly. The other girls paused their chatter to watch as Chris took her place amongst the _**IT**_ girls, the Cordelia's of Slayer central. The sound of the girls conversing erupted again.  
Buffy looked to the back wall and found a target board. She then looked to another wall and found a large and polished battleaxe. She gripped the hilt of the axe in her hand and took position in front of the board. She threw it with so much force that as it hit the board the collision sent vibrations through the surrounding walls. The crack of the axe passing through the wood and onto the brick behind it caught the attention of the girls as they jumped out of their skins like an antelope who had just heard a twig snap in the distance. The turned to their teacher, Buffy.

"This isn't good enough," Buffy paused letting her words sink in. "I walk in here and see the girls, some were at the battle in the Hellmouth, others recruited since, sitting under the same roof and looking _**down **_on each other.  
It Will Not Do.  
Not one of you is stronger than the other, not one of you is faster than the other, not one of you heals quicker and not one of you is BETTER than the other. You're all in the same boat, risking your lives daily to keep those you love safe, so can somebody tell me why this room is full of factions?" Buffy's words were sent into the heads of the newbies like a bullet to the brain, their heads dropped in shame. Kate's head however remained proud and raised. Buffy sent her gaze to the back of the room were her eyes met that of thirteen year old Amalia. She sat alone beside the bookcase. Amalia was the youngest Slayer in training; Buffy didn't know much about her background other than she was found by Robin in one of California's many counties. She probably felt like an outcast amongst the Slayers. "Friends are good to have, my friends are the reason I lived past my 20th birthday, but I've never had anybody else to relate to because I was always alone, in one way or another. Not to sound all high and mighty but before me it was **extremely **uncommon for a Slayer to reach her 20's because she had no ties to a world without demons and violence and blood and death.  
I did and _still_ do.  
So make friends, with everybody, next Saturday I do **NOT** want to see 10 different circles of friends, I want to see one huge circle of girls who have faith and trust in each other and the work we do!" Buffy told. Now Kate fell off her high horse, even she felt guilty for looking down on other people, the newbies that got hurt the worst out on patrols were looked at like they weren't good enough. Even though Kate felt guilt, she would never show it.  
"Death," she began, "it's what we are, what a Slayer was chosen to do, we deal in death every night and now thanks to yours truly, everyday. You've all had dreams, anybody who denied it would be lying, chances are you've had some of the same ones, raise your hand if you've had the dream were a bleach blonde vampire kills a Chinese Slayer?" Buffy asked. A lot of the girls raised their hands and they looked around shocked at the number of people who had shared the dream. "And we've all woken up the next morning and wondered why that fight was different, y'know what made that fight different? Why did they win, why did she lose? I have, I asked my watcher those questions three years ago and the only person with the answer believe it or not, was a vampire," the girls' eyes widened and chatter erupted, "this vampire told me that _Every Slayer has a Death Wish_, and y'know what? He was right. We can kill 100 vampires, 200 demons and even a God here and there, but we'll never win, they will just keep coming and coming and coming. It's when a Slayer realises this that she becomes weak, exhausted, she wants to lose the fight on some level so that it can be over, she pleads for death because the only true peace a Slayer can have is when she doesn't have to fight, and for that to happen, she _has_ to die. Realise now that there will never be a day that the world we live in will become vamp free, or all a vampire needs is '_One Good Night' _and it'll be over for you, decide now that you're ready for this life, ready to be chosen." Even Faith, who was listening intently from up the basement stairs received Goosebumps from Buffy's speech.

"Pick a sparing partner, grab a mat and get practicing," Buffy ordered. "Amalia, you're with Kate," Buffy ordered. Amalia was just happy to have a partner while the other girls took Buffy's advice and chose a partner whose name they didn't even know. Before long the girls were panting and kicking like pros.

* * *

Kevin and Johnny stood around the corner of the magic shop waiting for Luke. They had gotten tired of waiting and decided to peer around the corner. They spotted their friend talking to a young brunette woman.  
Amy and Luke stood outside the magic shop. Luke gave Amy $100 dollars for the Harpy's venom which she conjured from thin air and gave to him. "It was a pleasure," Amy smiled as she took the money and turned to walk away.

"Wait!" Luke called, "what if something goes wrong?" he asked.

"Run like hell," Amy called over her shoulder before turning a corner and vanishing. Luke wiped his forehead nervously and headed back to his friends. He spotted their heads behind one of the buildings and quickened his pace.

"Who was _that_?" Kevin asked.

"Nobody, j-just a girl," Luke stammered.

"A hot girl," Johnny added.

"Dude, shut up!" Luke scolded with a smack to the back of Johnny's head.

"Did you get the book and stuff?" Kevin asked.

"Better," Luke smirked as he showed his friends the musty old book and the Harpy venom. "So we meet up tonight," Luke said.

"Where?" Kevin asked.

"The memorial," Luke replied.

"Are we really gunna do this?" Johnny asked.

"Dude do not get cold feet now!" Luke exclaimed. "I'll call you guys later," Luke said as he turned from his comrades and headed home.

* * *

Once the girls had left the basement Buffy cleared up the mats, put the weapons back on the shelves and put the practice dummies back in their closets. She took a hefty swig of cold water from a bottle when her phone bleeped. She wiped her lips and headed for her phone. _  
SMS received  
Willow:  
911.

* * *

_

Willow and Xander burst into the manor with Dawn and spotted a worried Buffy pacing up and down the entrance hall waiting for them. After receiving Willow's message she had been worried sick waiting for her to get back. "Will, I got your message, what is it, what's wrong?" Buffy asked.

"It's Amy, she's in town," Willow replied.

"Dawn!" Buffy exclaimed as she spotted her sister. "I thought you were in your room!"

"So not the issue, punish later, supernatural happenings now," Dawn replied rolling her eyes.

"Okay back to Amy, did you talk to her? What did she say?" Buffy said, angry at the fact her destiny was getting in the way again.

"She was in the magic shop, Buffy…she works for Wolfram & Hart," Willow informed nervously. Buffy's expression dropped.

"Not good," Buffy hummed.

"But I think we have bigger problems," Dawn added.

"Wait, what?" Xander asked.

"You remember that guy? The one from this morning? The angry kid?" Dawn asked her sister.

"Yeah, so?" Buffy asked.

"He was in the magic shop too, I think he's planning to attack the dance tomorrow night," Dawn informed.

"Dawny I think we have bigger problems than the dance right now," Buffy dismissed.

"But you saw how angry he was, what if he casts some kind of spell to turn the _entire _student body into a bowl of shrimp or something," Dawn suggested.

"Dawn he's just a kid, besides shrimp?" Buffy said.

Dawn began, "But-"

"So what else did Amy say?" Xander asked Willow cutting Dawn off completely. The three original scoobies headed for the living room leaving an angry Dawn in the entrance hall. Dawn was convinced she was right about Luke and the dance even if her friends and sister didn't think it was a big enough problem. Unlike them, Dawn actually believed Amy's story, that she was just in Cleveland by chance and even though she was a bad person, she didn't have some huge evil plan. So she decided to turn to the person who she thought could help her.

"_Knock, Knock,_" Dawn said mimicking the sound she was making on the door of Giles's office.

"Come in," Giles called. Dawn entered Giles's office and stood in front of his desk.

"Giles, I need your help," Dawn began.

"Blast!" Giles said Britishly.

"What is it!" Dawn asked frantically trying to see the screen of Giles's laptop.

"Some piluk just out-bid me for the teapot!" Giles informed angrily.

"The _teapot_?" Dawn laughed.

"M-magic teapot," Giles said in an attempt to save his masculinity.

"Yeah, right," Dawn smiled.

"Anyway," Giles dismissed, "what can I do for you?"

"You're the only one left to help me," Dawn added as she sat down on a chair in front of his desk. Giles's face became serious.

"What is it?" Giles asked concerned. Dawn spent the next half hour walking Giles through everything that had happened to her that day. He seemed to agree with her that Luke may have something planned for the school dance.

"And I don't know about you but a good portion of gargoyle saliva with almost anything can do-" Dawn stopped herself when she saw Giles's face change, "something I don't know anything about," she saved.

"And your sister doesn't think this problem takes precedence?" Giles asked.

"No," Dawn said sadly, "She's way too caught up in all the Amy drama," Dawn concluded.

"Amy? Amy Madison? She's back?" Giles asked concerned.

"Giles please, one problem at a time," Dawn snapped.

"Right well I um, I will begin research on rituals that require the gargoyle saliva but I'm afraid I might find pretty vague possibilities," Giles winced.

"Just do what you can," Dawn replied.

"What about Buffy?" Giles asked.

"Let's keep her out of it," Dawn decided. "I need to show her I'm not a kid anymore," Dawn told as she got up from her chair and turned to leave.

"Dawn, if Buffy asks what's going on I'm not going to lie," he called after her.

"I know," Dawn replied over her shoulder as she left the office and headed for her room.

From then on the day went pretty quickly. Buffy, Willow and Xander left the living room pretty late, Buffy headed down to the basement and sparred with Cody, one of the survivors of the Hellmouth and crashed at about a half past midnight. Xander decided he would join the late night patrol with Rona and three other girls and Willow was up all night doing constant locater spells on Amy just to find out that she was at Wolfram & Hart all night. When every light in the manor was out Dawn decided to head down to the library to read over Giles's notes and see what she could make for herself. Junior Watcher and Undercover detective, who said imagination was dead?

Kevin and Johnny were told to meet Luke outside the High School at half one in the morning. Luke arrived first with his back pack filled with supplies. Kevin came second until all who was left to arrive was Johnny. "You don't think he's bailed out do ya?" Kevin asked.

"For his sake, I hope not," Luke scowled. Johnny then turned the corner and spotted his friends waiting for him. "You're late," Luke scolded.

"Sorry, just had to get my head around this," Johnny admitted.

"Yeah well twist your head around a pole if you have to but I need you committed," Luke said angrily. Johnny nodded. "Let's do this boys," Luke said eagerly.

Luke, Kevin and Johnny made their way to the science building just off the assembly hall. Luke grabbed a sheet from his backpack and wrapped it around his fist before punching a window, un-doing the lock and climbing in, the others followed close behind. They walked cautiously through the school until they set foot in the assembly hall. Kevin went to switch on the light but was warned not to by Luke. They walked up to a huge remembrance plaque. The black was wooden and had over twenty names written in gold. In bold letters above the plaque read:

_IN REMEMBANCE OF THOSE LOST._

The plaque was a memorial to the deaths of 20 students who died in a freak accident in the expressive arts building near the football field. But there are no such things as accidents on a Hellmouth. "Are we sure, y'know assuming we do this right, that this'll even work?" Johnny asked.

"Johnny's right man," Kevin added to Luke, "the spell asks for supernatural deaths, the E.A building burned down three years ago because of faulty wiring," Kevin informed.

"That's what we were told, but I heard from Greg who heard it from Annie who heard it from Lara who heard it from Danny who heard it from that crazy Goth kid that the E.A kids were witches into full on dark mojo, they conjured something that went nuts, killed 'em and burned the building to boot," Luke told.

"And how're we so sure that doing this ritual or whatever won't end up in us being fried extra crispy," Johnny gasped.

"We're not, but we won't, trust me," Luke persuaded. Luke began taking supplies out of his back pack while Johnny and Kevin set candles around the room and lit them. He pulled out an egg from a Rage Demon, smashed it and mixed the gunk inside with the Harpy Venom. He added wolfs bane, rose thorn and blood he bought from the butchers. He set the mixture in a jug on the floor and took a lit candle for himself; the other boys did the same.  
They chanted the spell from the book and the flames changed from calm yellow to devil red. They each dipped wax from the candle into the jug and it began to smoke.

"Cooooooooooool," Johnny said in amazement.

"I know right," Luke beamed incredibly proud of himself. He watched as the mixture began to boil and flashed back a few hours earlier. He had returned home from his meeting with his principal and head straight up his stairs.

"Did you find out what the principal wanted son?" his Father called from the kitchen. Luke inhaled swiftly before heading toward the kitchen; shaking like a leaf.

"N-nothing just-"

"What's that?" his dad asked interrupting him as he folded a piece of laundry and placed it into basket.

"It's nothing Dad really-"

"Lucas, give it to me," his father commanded sternly. Luke gave his father his notice of suspension from the principal. His father scanned the letter and his face turned as fire like red as the candle flame from the spell. His father lunged for him, shoving him into the dining table then into the dish washer before slamming him to the ground with one punch and shouting abuse that Luke had heard all to many times before.

He entered back into reality just in time to watch the mixture change colour. He shook off his distressing memory and picked up the jug. He threw the jug at the plaque and it oozed over the names of the deceased expressive arts students. The mixture flashed different colours and burned until the plaque was ashed completely. "Did it work?" Johnny asked still in awe of what he'd just seen.

"It worked," Luke sniggered.

Back at the manor Dawn had sat down in Giles's chair in the library and was thumbing through his notes. He wasn't kidding when he said the results would be vague as the stack of papers was as big as Dawn's head. She stopped as she found an interesting reference to a book. Giles's illustration of the book looked like the book Dawn had seen Luke with that day. She scowered the library for it and she flicked through the page for a reference to Harpy's venom, which was mentioned in his notes too. She read the page. It told of a spell only possible on the night of _All Hallow's Eve_ when the veil between worlds is weakest and when souls can cross over to the other side.

"Zombies? At the Dance? Perfect," she whispered.

**Chapter 4**

Dawn continued through Giles's notes looking for anything that would tell her how to reverse the spell Luke had cast. She absentmindedly wondered how tomorrow night was going to go, Chase was going to pick her up from the manor and they'd drive to the dance in his car. Then Buffy would arrive with the other chaperones and then everyone would be zombie food. _Great, just how I planned_ she thought sarcastically.  
Because the Manor was so quiet the silent creek of the old closed door sounded like the roar of an excited crowd as their team scored a point. She looked up from the stack of books and papers and heard lightly treading footsteps coming in her direction. Being Dawn, she immediately assumed, Buffy.  
The library doors opened and released a cold wind into the library. Dawn darted under the table grabbing as many books and pieces of paper as she could. She crouched under the table and was able to make out, through the darkness, black jeans and heavy boots. The mystery person jumped over one of the book counters and opened Giles' supply cupboard. Dawn decided she could probably sneak past the intruder and get safely back to her room. She treaded lightly across the floor and was almost past the door when her fingers slipped and the book she was holding dropped heavily to the floor.  
Faith's head shot up from Giles' supply cupboard, her brown hair trailing down her face, she was just as shocked as Dawn to see the other person. "Faith?" Dawn asked just to make sure.

"Jeez kid, don't sneak up on a girl like that," Faith said putting her hand over her heart to calm herself.

"Sorry I was just-"

"Going through Giles's stuff?" Faith said as she nodded at the mess of paper under Dawn's arm.

"Speak for yourself," Dawn retaliated with a nod to the large bottle of Vodka in Faith's grip.

"Touché," Faith nodded as she took a large swig of the clear poison.

"Are you_ drunk_?" Dawn scrutinised.

"Little bit," Faith smiled.

"Starting a little early don't ya think?" Dawn nodded towards the clock that read 01:52 am.

"Keep's the nightmares at bay," Faith exhaled. Dawn gave Faith a sympathetic look.

"Goodnight Faith," Dawn smiled.

"Night kid," Faith breathed. Dawn made her way to the double doors leading to the old closed door corridor.

"Faith, if Buffy asks-"

"I didn't see a thing, got it," Faith replied cutting in. Dawn headed upstairs to get what minutes of sleep she could manage.

* * *

She set her alarm an hour earlier that morning; she thought it best to be ready for school early. Since Giles hadn't found a reversal spell she figured the best thing to do was to ambush Luke and his friends and get them to tell her how to reverse the spell. So she made her way to the entrance hall, dodging Giles who had just wondered towards the kitchen for his morning coffee and Willow, Buffy and Xander who followed behind him who sounded like they were plotting an assault on the Cleveland branch of Wolfram & Hart. Some of the Slayers were up early too; they were sitting in their pyjamas in the lounge to the right talking but then gave Dawn an odd look as she was fully dressed 2 hours before school even starts. She gave them an unconvincing smile and headed for the door.  
She arrived at school about the same time the teachers did and made her way toward the entrance. She passed Katie Higgins, the Queen B and her entourage of loyal followers who were setting up the gym for the dance. While Katie carried a mere pen and paper her minions struggled with piles of huge cardboard boxes and decorations. Katie gave Dawn the brush off when Dawn made the nice gesture of a smile.  
_Bitch_ Dawn thought.  
She watched as Katie turned the corner towards the gym and rolled her eyes. A hand grabbed Dawns' shoulder and she spun around quickly to meet a shaggy dark haired tall boy, cleanly shaven wearing a short sleeve t-shirt and jeans. "Chase," Dawn cried happily.

"Hey," he replied taking her head in his hands and pecking her on the lips.

"You're at school early," Dawn muttered dazed.

"Yeah I promised Katie I'd help set up for the dance," Chase informed.

"Katie? Katie Higgins? She totally hates me," Dawn told.

"Yeah she hates everyone, but if I don't do my part tonight Fischer's gonna ban me from the dance," Chase said.

"Why?" Dawn asked.

"Me and some of the football guys put some freshman's back-pack up a tree last semester," Chase said casually but then responded because of the look on Dawn's face, "but I'm turning over a new leaf, haven't been to the principals office once _this _semester so I guess you could call me helping out with the dance my community service," Chase beamed.

"Are we still on for tonight?" Dawn asked.

"Defiantly," Chase smiled. "I'll swing by your place around 7:30, sound good?" Chase asked.

"Sounds perfect," Dawn smiled.

"**CHASE!**" Katie Higgins called from down the corridor. "Annabelle called in sick and she was supposed to hang streamers and I am _so_ not taking that bullet, move your ass!" she scolded.

"Duty calls, later babe," Chase said as he kissed Dawn's cheek and jogged off down the hall.

"Bye," Dawn hummed with her heart in flutters. She turned to the school entrance and saw Luke's friend, Johnny. He was looking exceptionally nervous. Dawn waited for him to enter the main building. She followed closely behind him and watched as he took an empty seat in the school lounge. She casually sat next to him. "Hey, Johnny," she smiled.

"Uh, Hi Dawn," Johnny replied sceptically.

"Okay so here's the thing, I know what you and your little buddies did last night and what you have planned for the dance," he opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off leaving his mouth hinged open, "yeah, I know, shocker, anyway, if you don't tell me how to reverse your little Hocus Pocus I'm gunna feed your _manhood_ to the school mascot, and that beaver is hungry Johnny, hungry," Dawn eyed him.

"I-I, I don't know what you're talking about," Johnny stammered as he attempted to get up from the sofa and leave. Dawn gripped him by the shoulder and pulled him back down.

"Oh I think you do," Dawn replied.

"I gotta go," Johnny wailed.

"Where? To Luke? To tell him somebody knows what's happening? Listen to me Johnny, if you don't tell me how to stop the spell a lot of innocent people are going to get hurt," Dawn persuaded.

"You're wrong, Luke said they'd just crash the dance a-a-and give everybody a good s-scare, then they disappear," Johnny added.

"He's lying to you Johnny, these corpses or whatever, they aren't looking to give you Goosebumps," Dawn replied. Johnny began to sweat and fumble with the buttons on his jacket. "You don't want this on your conscience…just tell me how to stop the spell," Dawn said cautiously.

"T-there's a, a talisman, around Luke's neck. Y-you have to smash it," Luke stammered.

"Okay, so I smash the talisman and Zombie prom doesn't happen?" Dawn asked. Johnny nodded. "But Lucas was suspended-"

"He's crashing the dance; he'll be in the _Burglar_ outfit," Johnny added.

"You did the right thing Johnny, and for future reference, make better friends," Dawn said before setting off to first period.

During lunch Dawn sat on the football field bleachers watching Chase at football practice. She called Giles and told him of the talisman, he found an illustration of it so when Dawn was at the dance she knew what to look for. Giles insisted on including Buffy into what was happening but Dawn refused, she thought her sister would soon realise her little sister, wasn't so little anymore.  


* * *

At the end of the school day Dawn and some of the newbies who attended Cleveland High took the bus home and walked up the private estate towards the manor. For once the topic of monsters and ghouls and goblins was a positive thing.  
Dawn spent an hour on her homework and started getting ready at around five thirty.  
She was placing the finishing touches onto her witch outfit when Buffy knocked on her door. "Dawn we better go now or we're gonna be late," Buffy informed.

"W-what are you talking about?" Dawn asked confused.

"The dance, y'know Halloween, kids beg for candy, you give it to them-"

"No, I know what you mean but I'm going with Chase, he's coming to pick me up at seven thirty," Dawn told.

"Chase Abrams? The one your principal insisted I keep you away from?" Buffy asked.

"No, Chase Abrams, my boyfriend and also a boy you've never met and yet you have such a low opinion of," Dawn retaliated.

"Dawn I just want what's best for you-"

"Buffy, please, he's a good person and he treats me, he treats me like…like I'm the only girl in the room," Dawn said.

"Just keep out of the way of your principal or it'll be my neck on the chopping board too," Buffy smiled. She could relate to Dawn so easily, when Buffy was Dawn's age, Angel was her world and nothing could have kept them apart.

"Thank you," Dawn smiled. The doorbell echoed throughout the manor for the very first time since they had lived there, they had always wondered what the speaker was for in the hallways of the fortress. "I better go," Dawn said.

"What? I don't get to meet him?" Buffy asked.

"Fine, just don't embarrass me, I really like this guy," Dawn replied. Dawn and Buffy headed down to the entrance hall, Dawn in her witches outfit and Buffy in her famous little red riding hood costume (which she was proud to say still fitted her).

Dawn took a deep breath in and opened the door. Chase wore a tuxedo with his hair jelled back tight, his shoes shined in the porch light. His eyes lingered on the witch who answered the door. "Wow, you look…" Chase struggled.

"You look…too," Dawn smiled. Chase leaned in to kiss his pagan beauty but stopped at the sight of Dawn's sister.

"Miss Summers, it's a, it's nice to meet you," Chase stammered.

"You too," Buffy replied suspiciously. The next few moments seemed to drag by as the three of them stood in awkward quietness.

"So," Dawn said breaking the silence, "I guess I'll see you later," Dawn said.

"Be careful," Buffy said as she subtly passed Dawn a small wooden cross. "Just in case," Buffy winked.

"Pleasure to meet you Miss Summers," Chase added.

"Again, you too," Buffy replied. Dawn and Chase, hand in hand, closed the manor door and headed towards Chases' car.

"So who're you supposed to be anyway?" Dawn asked him.

"What? I'm James Bond!" Chase said proudly. Dawn laughed as she climbed into the passenger seat of his second hand blue car.

They arrived at the dance when it was just about to get lively. Cheesy 80's horror movie soundtracks echoed out of the gym as people moved towards the main doors. But Dawn knew she couldn't begin enjoying it until she had successfully smashed Luke's talisman.  
Chase guided Dawn into the gym were her eyes met dancing bodies in the centre of the room, a band called _The Old Guy Stole My Lolly-Pop_ played on a manufactured stage near the back of the room. Streamers of green, black and orange hung from the ceiling and balloons trailed up the walls and along the floor. Chase was signalled by his teammates to go and sit at their table. "Hey I gotta go see Matt for a bit, you gonna be alright?" Chase asked.

"Sure, I'll mingle and you can come find me for the first dance," Dawn smiled, glad for the excuse to get away from him for a bit. Chase kissed her on the cheek and headed towards the Jock table. Dawn headed towards the stage where she found a worried Johnny. He sat dressed in a cowboy costume alone drinking straight Vodka from a flask.

"**Dawn!**" he exclaimed as he saw her.

"Any sign of Luke? I don't see a burglar costume in here," Dawn told.

"Dawn those things, the-the Zombies, they're on their way," Johnny whispered.

"What?" Dawn asked worried.

"Kevin overheard us talking this morning and told Luke everything, they've pushed the spell forward, and those things are coming…fast. I tried to get everybody out but they won't listen to me," Johnny cried over the music.

"Johnny, where is Luke now, is he here?" Dawn exclaimed. Luke pointed a finger toward a masked burglar across the room spiking the punch. Dawn was about to set off toward him when the vigorous vibrating of her phone in her pocket caught her attention.

_Giles Calling._

"Hello?" Dawn shouted down the phone.

"Dawn?" Giles roared back at the manor.

"Giles? Kind of a bad time, about to tackle a bad guy and completely demolish my social life," Dawn exclaimed.

"**Do Not Smash The Talisman**!" Giles cried.

"What?" Dawn replied.

"The Talisman! Do not smash it! The boy you spoke to was wrong, smashing the Talisman does not destroy the zombies, it animates them permanently, the talisman has to be frozen! Only then will the _Zombies_ be stopped," Giles warned. Dawn turned to the window of the gym which overlooked the football field. A hoard of decaying corpses stumbled towards the gymnasium; eyes glowing red. "What's more is the talisman acts as a beacon drawing the dead to the desired place!" Giles added.

"Getting that, Giles I think I'm in way over my head here!" Dawn panicked.

"Dawn I believe in you, you can do this!" Giles encouraged. At that moment Buffy entered the gym with a bored look on her face. Her face screamed that she didn't want to be there to everyone who looked.

"I can do this, thanks for the heads up Giles," Dawn said as she hung up the phone and made her way toward the punch table where Luke was now finished contaminating the liquid with alcohol. The brunette Witch cutting through the crowd of dancing maniacs caught the boys attention. Luke made a break for the exit when he realised it was Dawn. Dawn shot off after him as he headed toward the football field. Buffy watched gazed as her younger sister bolted from the dance.  
Luke stupidly headed toward the walking dead because he had no other options. The Zombies were but meters away when Dawn caught him by the fabric of his black and white striped shirt. She aggressively tackled him to the ground. She snapped the band from around his neck and struggled to get back to her feet. He'd ripped her dress all down the side as he struggled to release himself.

"Doesn't matter! This School's gonna pay for what it did to me!" Luke exclaimed angrily. Dawn turned around to reply to him but was shocked to see that he was lying on the grass waiting to be caught up in the zombie stampede. She was about to run back to him to help him up, but a half bald rotting woman wearing next to nothing had already began feasting on the all to willing boy.  
Dawn set off as fast as her grass stained legs would carry her toward the science building with the talisman grasped tightly in her hand. The Zombies, when they had finished off Luke, followed her. The ones that had eaten parts of Luke's body must've received energy from it as they were able to run after Dawn instead of dramatically drag themselves slowly across the tarmac.  
She figured that if she had to freeze the Talisman to make the Zombies go away then she would find something in the science labs.

* * *

"Miss Summers?" Chase asked Buffy back at the dance. "Have you seen Dawn? I can't find her anywhere," Chase asked sounding worried.

"I have, she bolted out of here ten minutes ago," Buffy said angrily.

"She did, do you know why?" Chase asked.

"No, but I bet you do. What did you say to her? Did you and your football buddies make fun of her? Was she just some game? Embarrass the new kid, that sorta thing?" Buffy asked with venom dripping from her lips.

"No! Miss Summers I care about your sister more than I have about anybody," Chase argued.

"Yeah that's what they all say," Buffy replied turning her back on him.

* * *

Dawn crashed into the science lab and barricaded the door behind her with a desk, a stool and a filing cabinet. Dawn looked around at the all too familiar surroundings. She'd been in this position last year except the school was under attack by a vampire, not Zombies. She turned to the door and in her memory saw Amanda cowering on the floor in fear. Amanda then stopped and smiled at Dawn; Dawn smiled back but then was snapped back into reality when five rotting corpses started attacking the door. They broke the glass and started pushing away the objects blocking their entry.

"Okay Dawn think," she said out loud, "freezing things, what do you use…" she spotted a bottle in the supply cabinet at the back labelled _Liquid Nitrogen_. She used a stool to smash the glass because the cabinet was locked. She took the bottle from the freezing cabinet and laid the Talisman on a desk.  
The Zombies burst into the classroom causing Dawn to scream. She poured the entire contents of the bottle onto the Talisman and the Zombies began to slow down. They started shaking and quivering, vomit and blood spurted from their mouths before they crumbled into ash upon the floor.

* * *

"Will, are you sure this is going to work? I mean you've done so many locator spells that a witch as strong as Amy must know what's goin' on. And now you're trying to bind her powers?" Xander asked Willow puzzled back at the manor.

"It should work, a-assuming Amy isn't as smart as she appears," Willow said before starting the incantation.

* * *

Dawn made her way back down to the dance, completely exhausted from all that running that when she ran into her older sister who was looking for her she all but fell into her arms. "Dawn, are you okay? What happened to your dress?" Buffy asked worried.

"Oh y'know, just saved the entire student body from a horrible gruesome death," Dawn exhaled on her sister. Dawn cast her gaze to the football field where amongst a lot of ash laid Luke's barely noticeable remains. "Almost," Dawn added solemnly.

"Huh?" Buffy asked.

"Y'know what? Never mind," Dawn whispered.

"So it wasn't Chase that made you leave the dance?" Buffy winced.

"_**What?**_" Dawn piped up, "No, what did you do?" Dawn asked.

"Oh dear," Buffy hummed innocently.

"I am so going to kill you," Dawn smiled. Buffy smiled too. Buffy wrapped Dawn in the cape from her _Little Red Riding Hood_ costume and they headed back to the dance. "Do you think we'll ever have a quiet Halloween?" Dawn asked.

"I dunno, this one was pretty mild," Buffy replied.

"Speak for yourself," Dawn said rolling her eyes.

* * *

Across town, Julie sat in her apartment at her dining table. She flipped her phone open and dialled Xander's number. '_Hey you've reached Xander, I can't come to the phone right now but leave me a message and I'll get back to you.'_  
Julie exhaled heavily and shut the door on her still leaking kitchen.

* * *

Giles sat in his office holding his cell phone nervously in his hands waiting for news from Dawn, the manor was so quiet with most of the girls at the dance. Giles was startled to hear the official phone land line that the manor used to cover up what actually went on there. He didn't know whether to answer or not in case he said the wrong thing but he feared it might be the High School sending bad news about Dawn. He gripped the phone in his hand and held it to his ear. "Hello?" Giles sounded.

"Giles?" Asked a familiar voice.

"Angel?" Giles asked shocked and confused.

"Giles, we need your help, how soon can Buffy be in L.A?" Angel asked.

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for reading, reviewing and adding myself or my story to your alerts.


	11. Episode 11: Damage

Buffy the Vampire Slayer  
Season 8, Episode 11

Damage

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Buffyverse, I am just a fan.

Summary: Giles has received a chilling phone call from Buffy's ex-lover, Angel asking for Buffy's help with an escapee slayer from a mental home. Buffy hesitantly agrees and catches the first plane across the country to Los Angeles, California.

Chapter 1

18 hours ago: Los Angeles, California.  
  
The good doctor made his way towards the psychiatric unit just like he did every night. The corridor was bathed in bright lights from the ceiling which reflected off of the pasty white painted walls. Over the intercom a woman was requesting a nurse to go and pick up an electrical extension cord but the good doctor ignored this as he took a set of keys from the pocket of his long white medical coat and inserted a key into the locked fence leading to the extreme cases that the psychiatric hospital treated. He placed his clipboard under his shoulder as he shut the fence behind him and made his way towards the nurse's reception. "Hey Doc?" a nurse in the reception began, she was a plump curly haired blonde holding the newspaper crossword, "we're running low on _Diazepam…_again," she hummed.

"Call Jacobson over at county and see if they can spare any," he said. He looked up from his clipboard and spotted the crossword puzzle. "Give me one," he asked.

"Okay, um… in a mellifluous manor, seven letters, ends in a 'y'" the nurse read. The doctor thought for a moment.

"Give me _another_ one," he smiled. However before the nurse could reply another nurse burst into the corridor.

"Doctor Rabinaw!" she called frantically. She came running toward the fence that separated the nurse's reception with the corridor where the extreme cases lived. Dr Rabinaw opened this fence to allow the nurse through. "It's Phillip," she told him worryingly. The Doctor and the nurse headed toward Phillip, the patients, room and found him crawled up in the fetal position on the floor with saliva dripping from his mouth. The doctor rushed to his side and checked for a pulse.

"What happened?" The doctor asked.

"I, I don't know he just started convulsing after he took his meds," the nurse informed.

"How much _Lithium _did you give him?" Doctor Rabinaw asked.

"_Lithium_?" the nurse asked confused as she looked through her clipboard papers. "No, he gets _Thorazine_," said the nurse.

"_Thorazine_?" the doctor asked, "He's manic depressive he doesn't need a sedative!"

"I'm sorry I, I must've gotten them mixed up," the nurse struggled.

"Who didn't get their _Thorazine_?" the doctor asked getting up from Philips side and snatching the nurse's clipboard. "Oh god," the doctor hummed fearfully.  
Down the hall a loud banging erupted from the room furthest down the corridor. "Peterson!" the doctor called as he opened yet another fence with his set of keys. Along the corridor the wooden door furthest the back was receiving a serious beating from the other side. Peterson, the on call usher, arrived as Rabinaw took a needle from the pocket of his medical coat. The banging continued as the two men edged down the blindingly white corridor until suddenly silence descended.  
Just as the doctor breathed a sigh of relieve the door was catapulted off of its hinges and skidded along the floor revealing a late teen girl with messy black hair draped over her face and hospital gown. The girl treaded lightly down the corridor squinting her eyes from the light. "It's alright Dana, it's me, Doctor Rabinaw," the good doctor informed. The girl continued slowly down the corridor causing Peterson and the doctor to back away. "Just take it easy, I want you to listen to me, you're very sick and we just," Peterson pulled the doctor behind a fence and locked it leaving the girl, Dana, on one side alone, "wanna' make you better," the doc continued. Dana's gaze fell to the syringe in Rabinaw's hand.  
She gripped the locked metal fence by her fingers and pulled, ripping it off the wall and tossing it behind her. Peterson and another usher attacked her with sticks which she ducked and sent the other on call hurtling onto his back. She back-handed Peterson into a wall and kicked the other man in the stomach as he tried to regain balance. Peterson attempted to grab her by her torso but she kicked a wall sending them both in the opposite direction and making the wall collide with Peterson's back. She gripped the other man by the thread of his uniform and smashed his head through the glass window on a medical cupboard. Dana turned her head and her eyes found the shining metal of a sharp medical cleaver knife. As though in a trance she took the cleaver in her grasp but suffered a heavy blow to the back of the head from Peterson's cain. Her head however didn't even flinch; she spun around and sliced Peterson's neck wide-open with the cleaver. Peterson fell dead to the ground.

"Oh no," the doctor whispered fearfully as he fled the scene. Dana looked upon the man she had just killed and leaned over him. She began to cut him deeper and washed her hands in his blood. She dragged her fingertips down her face leaving horizontal stripes of blood in their place.

Present Day: Cleveland, Ohio

Buffy and Dawn got back to the manor from the Dance at about 11:00 pm. Buffy had made an apology to Chase for assuming he was the reason Dawn had fled the dance and he drove Dawn and Buffy back to the manor. Buffy was proud to say that she approved of her younger sisters love interest and that she believed her when she said he wasn't the bully he used to be. Buffy quietly closed the manor door and headed for the staircase after kissing her sister goodnight. Dawn went to the living room behind the old door and took a seat, she was extremely proud of what she had accomplished that night.  
And even more so because she did it absent Slayer abilities.  
She had left the door open and watched as Giles, in a grey jumper and pants, walked past the door frame. "Giles!" she called to him. Startled by the sudden sound of Dawn's voice he turned around and peered into the living room. He found Dawn lounging on the sofa.

"You're back," Giles announced.

"Yeah," Dawn beamed.

"So I take it tonight went well?" Giles asked.

"Amazing actually, zombies went cabloo-ey and I saved the day," Dawn added.

"Good. And what of the talisman?" Giles asked.

"Frozen, defiantly, why?" Dawn asked.

"Well it's been activated, if it thaws out-" Dawn interrupted him as she pulled the icy talisman from her pocket.

"I just wanna point out that I don't want that thing near the refrigerator," Dawn said.

"I'll put it somewhere safe," Giles nodded as he took the talisman from Dawn and placed it into his pocket and cast a wide glance across the room.

"Giles, you okay?" Dawn asked picking up on the fact that something other than the Halloween mishaps was on her father-figure's mind.

"Hmm?" he asked.

"I asked if you were okay…"

"Oh, um, I'm fine…do you know where your sister is?" Giles added.

"She headed up to her room about five minutes ago, doubt she's gotten there though, she will've been stopped in one of the halls because of a Slayer related minor crisis," Dawn rolled her eyes.

"I should go find her," Giles told.

"Sure," Dawn agreed confused.

"Goodnight Dawn," Giles said.

"Night," Dawn replied.

Giles left a puzzled Dawn in the living room and headed to Buffy's room on the third floor. He was hesitant to tell Buffy of the Slayer crisis in Los Angeles because the last time Buffy ventured there he feared her dead. The mansion was in uproar with the new arrivals not to mention the sunlight resistant vampires that were still giving the newbies a run for their money during day patrols. He arrived on the second floor and heard a ruckus coming from the above level. He quickened his pace in time to see _Little Red Riding Hood_ separate a fight between Tiffany and Dina. Something over stolen hair extensions is what Giles could make out from all the shouting. He watched proudly as his Slayer resolved the issue and went into her room. Giles followed her and knocked on the door. "Come in," Buffy called. Giles entered Buffy's room. "Giles, Hey," Buffy smiled.

"Dawn tells me tonight went well," Giles said.

"Yeah, she says she stopped a Zombie hoard with Liquid Nitrogen, if you ask me somebody's been watching a little to much sci-fi and exaggerated a bit," Buffy told.

"Buffy I um-"

"Have you seen Willow? She was planning to do some mojo on Amy," Buffy said cutting him off.

"I'm afraid not, but Buffy-"

"How about Xander, he said he had a date tonight," Buffy added as she stepped into her slippers.

"No, no I haven't, Buffy while you where gone-"

"And with Xander's track record Dawn and I have a bet going on whether she's a demon or something," Buffy cut in again.

"It-it's possible-"

"Or maybe _she_ isn't even a _she_, _she _could be a _he_," Buffy interrupted.

"Buffy-"

"I hope he didn't stand her up-"

"**Buffy Listen to me!**" Giles bellowed. Buffy turned to meet her watchers gaze; he'd never spoken to her like that before. She was lost for words. "For once will you _stop_ your prattling on and listen to me!" Giles said angrily.

"What's happened?" Buffy asked seriously as she realised Giles wouldn't speak to her like that if thing's weren't serious.

"While you were at the school, I got a phone call…from Wesley," Giles added.

"Is Angel okay? Is it Spi-" Buffy quickly stopped talking when she realised Giles still didn't know Spike was alive. She had avoided having to have the conversation with him for months. "Spi-spies?" Buffy saved.

"What? No," Giles said confused. "It would seem Los Angeles is being terrorized by a psychotic rogue Slayer," Giles informed.

_That is so 1999 _Buffy thought. "When's the next flight?" Buffy asked.

15 Hours Ago: Los Angeles California

Angel stepped out of the elevator in the psychiatric hospital wearing a grey shirt, a jacket and pants. He looked to his right only to see the person he despised most in the world "Oh," Spike chuckled, "well fancy this, that pitty slug I saved you from scrambled your brain after all, come to check yourself in?" Spike laughed.

"What're you doin' here Spike?" Angel said as he walked away. Spike followed shortly behind him.

"You didn't get the memo? I'm hero of the people now," Spike said proudly as he and Angel made their way down the corridor.

"Then go and annoy them," Angel replied.

"I heard one of the simples went for a strole," Spike said ignoring Angels' comment and referring to Dana.

"Yeah and I'm gonna get her back without _your're_ help," Angel said.

"Goody for you coz' um, not offering it," Spike retaliated.

"Look shouldn't you be out in the streets, y'know protecting the city from," Angel paused as he saw a fenced gate bent out of place, "people like you."

"I go where I'm needed," Spike replied.

"Which isn't here," Angel said.

"Gentlemen, may I help you?" asked the plump, curly blonde haired nurse from the nurse reception.

"Can I help you?" Doctor Rabinaw asked cutting the nurse off.

"I'm here to get your patient back, I'm Angel, Wolfram & Hart," Angel handed the doctor his business card.

"A lawyer?" the Doc asked suspiciously. "I already told the police everything I know."

"Well let's go over it again just in case you left out any…details," Angel intimidated.

"Yeah, what he said, but with a bit more of a threat at the end," Spike added.

The doctor took the vampires to Dana's room. Spike's infamous leather duster ripped from the body of a corpse trailed the floor. "So what're we thinking here?" Spike asked.

"Harmony seems to think demonic possession," Angel said.

"Yeah but she never was the sharpest stake in the weapons chest," Spike replied.

They turned into the wrecked room. The bed was pushed up against the wall while the mattress had been angrily thrown across the room. The walls were littered with child-like drawings of fires and violence and monsters. "She was a special case," the Dr began, "her family was murdered in her home when she was 10, and whoever did it took Dana…and tortured her for months. She was found one day naked and bleeding, wandering the streets barely functional. She's been nearly catatonic ever since."

"Look's like she snapped out of it," Spike said referring to the hole in the wall were the door used to be.

"Several months ago her condition changed, increasing levels of agitation accompanied by explosive outbursts of inhuman strength," Rabinaw informed.

"Right Demon possession, I got a beasty to catch," Spike said.

"Spike wait-" but before Angel could continue Spike was already gone out the room. "Sorry," Angel said turning back to the doctor, "is pathological idiot a real thing?" Angel asked.

"Might I suggest you stop your friend, if he finds Dana he's gonna wind up dead like all the others," the Doctor warned.

"Yeah but he'll just keep coming back," Angel whispered as the doctor left him alone in Dana's room. Angel cast his gaze around the room. "What isn't he tellin' me?" he asked the plump blonde nurse who admired him from the doorway.

"Rabinaw videotaped all of his sessions with her," she announced.

"Show me," Angel commanded.

Present Day: Cleveland, Ohio

Buffy began panicking as she dashed around her room for her typical black leather travelling bag. Giles had run down to the basement and collected as many weapons as he could find. If they knew one thing about rogue Slayers by now it was that they don't go down easy.  
Once her bag was packed she sat on the bed with her watcher and contemplated the time ahead. "It's going to be fine," Giles assured her.

"Don't get me wrong Giles it's not this Dana that's worrying me," Buffy said.

"Angel?" Giles asked.

"Yatzee," Buffy hummed.

"But why Buffy? From what you've said your last visit to Wolfram & Hart wasn't all that but you never mentioned anything different about Angel," Giles said.

"It's that place Giles, it-it's changed him, he's different and not in a more broody sort of way but just…different," Buffy said.

"I'm sure whether he's the Angel you remember or not he's going to be thrilled to see you," Giles persuaded.

"Maybe," Buffy replied. Willow and Xander suddenly burst into Buffy's room.

"We saw the raid, weapons galore, what's the what?" Xander asked with a nod at Buffy's bag.

"Angel, he's in trouble," Buffy replied.

"Trouble? What kinda trouble?" Willow asked.

"The kind of trouble only we can deal with. They've got themselves a crazy Slayer, literally," Buffy announced.

"So you're just flying out there in the middle of the night because Angel clicked his fingers?" Xander scrutinised.

"Hey, don't go all superior relationship guy on me, how was your date with Julie?" Buffy asked.

"Oh god," Xander said suddenly remembering his arrangement with Julie.

"Ya stood her up huh?" Willow disapproved.

"Aw man, I gotta call her," Xander said.

"What at half past midnight?" Giles added. Xander dropped his head in his hands.

"Back to this whole Angel thing," Willow said.

"I don't want you guys anywhere near that place, not again, not ever," Buffy replied.

"No Buff, you need back up," Xander said.

"You're not getting out of talking to the hot teacher that easy Xan," Buffy smiled.

"Xander's personal life aside, you shouldn't go alone," Giles said.

"Or maybe you can go by yourself, you'll have Angel and Spi-" Willow stopped when she realised Giles was still in the dark about Spike's resurrection. "**Spies**," Willow awkwardly corrected. Giles looked confused at the second reference of spies he'd heard that night.

"Take Andrew," Giles suggested.

"**Yes!**" called Andrew's voice from out in the hallway.

"Andrew! Have you been listening this whole time?" Buffy asked.

"I get bored!" Andrew complained childishly. "Please, please can I go, I never get any fun around here."

"It's not going to be fun Andrew, it's gonna' be dangerous and-and," Buffy stopped when she saw the longing expression on Andrew's face. "Oh what the hell," Buffy gave in.

"I'll go pack my stuff!" Andrew said excitedly.

"But we're not sitting together on the plane!" Buffy called after him as he bolted from the room.

"Ah, taking the little virgin on a road trip, you should get an award," Willow joked.

"**So**, how are you planning to get me through customs with all these weapons?" Buffy asked Giles changing the subject.

"I'll make a few calls, shouldn't be a problem," Giles replied.

"When's your flight?" Xander asked.

"Pretty much now, you'll look after Dawn for me?" Buffy asked.

"Sure," Willow replied.

"I'll call you guys when I land," Buffy said before hugging her friend's goodbye.

14 hours and 55 minutes ago: Los Angeles, California

The nurse had taken Angel in Doctor Rabinaw's private office and set him in front of a T.V and a VCR. She inserted a tape into the machine and Angel found himself watching a restrained Dana wriggle and writhe and spurt words he assumed to be gibberish. "And _that's with_ the Thorazine," the nurse said. Angel looked around at the office. It was full of shelves stacked with white tape cases.

"These tapes are all of her?" Angel asked.

"Most of em' yeah, Rabinaw's planning on writing a book on her, that's why he doesn't want anyone to know about the tapes," the nurse informed.

"So you're the one who called Wolfram & Hart?" Angel asked.

"Yeah I-"

"Wait, pause that," Angel said as he began to understand some of the words Dana was spouting in the tape.

"They're pretty much all like that, monkey gibberish if you ask me," said the nurse.

"It's Romanian," Angel hummed.

"You understand what she's saying?" asked the nurse.

"Yeah, I know what she's saying," Angel said with a fearful look washing over him.

Soon after, Angel left the mental home and climbed into his sleek black Aston Martin. He dialled Wesley's number with one hand and held the wheel with the other. "Wyndam-Pryce," Wesley said as he answered his phone back at the office.

"Wes, I need Dana's last known sighting, I need a tactical team ready and waiting for my signal," Angel ordered.

"Do you think that's wise? I've been brushing up on my knowledge of demonic possessions," Wesley warned.

"That's not what's happening," Angel said. "Look there were drawing of demons in her room, hundreds of them, some had a little girl in them, I thought they were of Dana but the girls are all different, s'not her."

"Are you sure? Multiple personality manifestations are often associated with cases of possession," Wesley told.

"It's not just the drawings; I saw a tape of her. She was speaking a half dozen languages; one of em' was Romanian. She was yelling about being Chosen, she's not a demon Wes, she's **a Vampire Slayer**," Angel said.

Chapter 2

12 hours ago: Los Angeles, California.

Dana had stumbled into a market on the busy streets of peak-time L.A. She received numerous funny looks from passers by because of her messy hair and hospital gown; she subconsciously kept the metallic cleaver hidden as she headed toward the food isle. She was so hungry that her gut was begging for sustenance. She crashed into one of the stacks and began tearing off the wrappings to chocolate, cookies, candy and cereal; anything she could get her hands on, she devoured animalisticly.  
A fair haired man who was busy stacking the shelves on the opposite side of the isle spotted the dark-haired girl as she tore into another caramel bar. "Um, Miss? Hey, are you gonna, pay for those?" he asked awkwardly. Dana completely ignored him as she tossed the wrappings to the floor. "Excuse me," the man tried again, "miss you can't just eat those like that, you have to pay for em'." The man didn't like being ignored. "Hey c'mon," he said as he put a gentle hand on her shoulder, "knock it off-" before he could continue Dana had grasped him by the fore arm and pulled. His arm snapped and he fell to the floor like a sack of bricks clutching at his arm in pain. Dana grabbed her weapon from the shelf and continued down the isle.  
She found herself at a rack of clothes. Once again she placed the knife on the shelf and picked out a pair of dark jeans from the rack. Her gaze fell upon a dark t-shirt and she was bathed in fear. She began to remember a man in the same colour shirt walking through a dark room, her mind, weak as it was, also forced her to see a shelf of bloodied knives and weapons, she remembered the man picking up one of the dirty knives and turning to a girl chained to huge pipes, the girl was her when she was 10 and taken away by the man who killed her family.

"Alright now," said an aged dark skinned man in a police uniform pointing a gun at the slayer which snapped her out of her terrifying memory, "you just stay right like that, I don't wanna have to hurt cha'," he wavered.

Dana left the store without her hospital gown but with her cleaver even bloodier than before.

Somewhere over Indiana: Present Day

"I can't believe Giles didn't book us separate seats," Buffy said as she turned her gaze from Andrew who had just bought almost everything off of the planes duty free trolley and charged it to Giles's credit card.

"Hey, I'm not so thrilled either sister," Andrew snapped as he slurped his drink loudly.

The plane was a blinding white tube of to many small blue seats to count. The falsely happy stewardess's patrolled the narrow corridors with their painted on smile as they indicated the security exits to every passenger. Buffy fiddled with her uncomfortable seatbelt. She pulled the latch and released the uncomfortably tight material from round her waist. "M'am, you have to keep your seatbelt on at all times," said a tall blonde steward.

"Right, sorry," Buffy said as she fastened her seatbelt. Somewhere down the long intimidating cylinder a baby wailed deafeningly.

"Oh, on every plane!" Andrew exclaimed.

"Andrew!" Buffy snapped as she punched him in the arm. Passengers' heads turned to Buffy and Andrew's seats because of Andrew's angry outburst. "Are you drunk?" Buffy asked seriously as she spotted the empty bottles on Andrew's tray.

"No...Maybe…Just a little, but those wine coolers are delicious, try one!" Andrew insisted.

"No I don't want a wine cooler and you can't have any more either!" Buffy scolded under her breath.

"Hey, you're not the boss of me!" Andrew shouted. Buffy shot Andrew a look. "I'll be good," he added with a weak smile.

"And what's with the suit?" Buffy scrutinised as she gave a glance to Andrew's attire.

"Uh, we're going to a law firm, y'know…I wanna look the part," he beamed.

"Whatever," Buffy whispered as she sighed loudly and pressed the back of her head to her chair.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asked.

"Fine," Buffy lied.

"You've never flown before have you?" Andrew asked.

"No," Buffy admitted.

"Well taking off is the hard part, the rest is just like y'know, a bus or train," Andrew helped. Buffy nodded and the next few minutes fell silent.

"You tell anybody I'm afraid of flying, and I _will_ kill you," Buffy sounded.

"Got it," Andrew said as he mimed zipping her lips together and throwing away the key.

6 hours ago: Los Angeles, California

Spike had spent hours tracking Dana's scent and he had finally reached the market. Flashing red and blue lights washed the surrounding area as police cars and ambulances hurried to the scene. A security officer with a sliced neck wound and an employee of the market were being loaded into ambulances while police took out note pads and pens to take witness statements. Spike strolled around the scene and found a faint trail of blood. He knelt down to the pavement and dipped his fingers in the, almost dry, red fluid that he craved and held it to his nose.

Dana entered the main room of a large tobacco warehouse not far from the market with her metallic cleaver-like weapon in hand. She looked around the room and found wooden crates, some in better condition than others, chains that hung from the ceiling and faulty huge glass windows that overlooked the back alley of the building. Dana stepped toward one of the windows and gazed out upon the unfamiliar city. "Liking the view, are we?" called an unfamiliar voice from behind her. She spun around to find a blonde haired man in black clothes and a black leather duster eyeing up her mask of blood that she'd drawn onto her own face. Spike stepped toward her cautiously. "What's say we have a nice, quiet chat about _mistreating_ little girls," Spike paused as he shook his head to activate his game-face, "demon to demon." Dana smiled devilishly at the sight of her vampire enemy. "What're you grinnin' at?" Spike asked puzzled.

Dana thought actions spoke louder than words and so lunged toward Spike with her weapon. He dodged her swift attacks cunningly before backing away to create room. "Oh yeah, look at _the big bad demon hidin' inside the helpless little girl_," he taunted. Dana launched forward again with her cleaver but it instead collided with Spikes' foot. The cleaver shot out of the Slayer's hand and skidded along the floor amongst some barrels and crates. Spike grabbed Dana by the thread of her chequered shirt and tossed her into pieces of broken debris which she landed on heavily. "Why don't you come on outa' there, let's have a proper go mate," Spike sounded. Dana got to her feat and grabbed a loose piece of wood from a broken crate and held it firmly. "Or you could do that," Spike hummed. Dana hurled herself at him with the stake many times but once again the vampire was too quick for her. He ducked under one of her attacks but didn't account for a back-hand punch that sent him hurtling toward the wall. Dana jumped for him and landed on his lap with her stake above his chest, however he caught her hand and together they struggled to subdue the other.

"我會殺了你的吸血鬼," Dana exclaimed.

"Sorry love, I don't speak Chinese," Spike chuckled. He knocked the stake from her hand and kicked her to the side of the face. She stumbled backwards and the two enemies began trading blows. "You've got no chance love, thanks to my little power boost a few months back I'm stronger than ever, now I'm going to take you back to the loony bin whether you like it or not," Spike told. Spike raised his leg to kick her but she ducked under him, Spike lost his balance for a moment but a moment was all she needed to grab him by the leather of his coat and thrust him through one of the enormous windows; shattering the glass. Spike was sent tumbling out into the city and began falling at an incredible speed. He hit the ground of the alley with so much force that strands of his bleach blond hair made it through the mounds of Gel he used to keep it back.

Present Day: Los Angeles Airport, California

Buffy and Andrew got off of the plane and made their way as casually through the airport as they could. They received Buffy's bag of weapons from a mysterious looking flight attendant who nodded at her seriously. They stepped outside into the brisk night air of California and found a stretch limo and a chauffeur waiting for them. He asked if they had been sent by Rupert Giles and before the Slayer knew it, she was on her way to the place she hated more than high school.

25 minutes ago, Los Angeles California

Spike lay there amongst the glass for quite some time. He woke when the blinding light of Angel's car headlights and the roar of the engine appeared in the alley. Spike rolled his eyes before shakily getting to his feet. "What happened?" Angel asked angrily as he got out of his car.

"Just thought I'd see what it was like to bounce off the pavement," Spike said sarcastically as he shook the glass from his precious coat.

"Stay out of it, tactical's on their way," Angel told.

"Oh right, I'm sure she'll hang around until _they_ show up," he replied. Angel advanced towards Spike.

"You should have waited," Angel spat.

"Keep ya' knickers on; least now I know what we're dealing with, it's a Chinese demon, maybe a water dragon or one of those elemental thingies!" Spike informed eagerly. Angel sighed and headed back toward his car. "What?" Spike asked confused.

"Just _get_ in the car Spike," Angel ordered. Spike rolled his eyes before complying with _The Nancy Boys'_ wishes.

Present Day: Wolfram & Hart: Los Angeles, California

"_A psychotic vampire slayer_," Spike said as he and Angel emerged from the elevator into the main lobby of Wolfram & Hart.

"How many times are you going to keep saying that?" Angel asked annoyed.

"Just trying to wrap my lobes around it, _a psycho slayer_," Spike repeated.

"And you let her get away," Angel jibed.

"At least I was trying to stop her," Spike retaliated.

"Oh yeah and how'd that work out?" Angel replied.

"At least I know the game now don't I? Killed two Slayers with my own I hands, I think I can handle one who's gone daft in the melon especially since the almighty forces made me stronger," Spike said proudly. Angel still hadn't came to grips with the fact that Spike was able to walk about in the day and he was stuck imagining the feel of the sun's warmth upon his pale face through the windows of Wolfram & Hart.

"You're not handling anything, Spike, okay? Wes contacted Rupert Giles and he's sent his top guy to retrieve Dana," Angel informed. By now they had reached the doors of Angel's office. Angel was about to walk in when Spike pulled him back by the forearm.

"Top guy? You mean Buffy?" Spike asked.

"I dunno," Angel said defeated. "Maybe, but after what happened last time it's probably some new watcher in training," Angel replied.

"Guess there's only one way to find out," Spike said. Angel pressed his hands on the doorknobs of his office and pushed the two wooden doors open. Angel turned to the long meeting table to the left of the entrance to his office in the hopes of seeing the girl of his dreams, the girl whom he dreamt of night after night, but instead he found Wesley, Fred, Gunn and Lorne sitting around the head of the table joined by a post-pubescent male in a suit. Spike was doing the same; he scanned the heads of everyone present in the hopes of seeing that shade of sunlight blond he remembered all to well. But both vampires were whacked with disappointment when Buffy Summers was nowhere to be seen.

"Ah Angel," Wesley greeted formally, "We were just about to-" before Wesley could continue the boy in the suit turned around in his chair and stared wide-eyed at the bleach blonde vampire.

"**SPIKE!**" he chimed excitedly as he rose from his seat.

Spike began, "oh for the love of-"

"**SPIKE!**" Andrew exclaimed again in disbelief. Andrew grabbed Spike by the shoulders and looked eagerly at each of his features. "It's you, it's really you!" Andrew said as he threw his arms around the vampire. "My therapist thought I was holding onto false hope but I knew you'd come back," Andrew sobbed into Spikes' shoulder. "He's alive _Frodo_, he's alive," Andrew sobbed.

"You two know each other?" Angel asked. Andrew awkwardly backed away from Spike, wiped his eyes and fixed his suit.

"Uh, ya, w-we saved the world together, I mean Buffy helped but it was mostly…us," Andrew hummed.

"Hey!" called the angelic sound of a familiar voice from behind the fray of people. Both Spike and Angel suddenly realised that that familiar enticing smell wasn't a new perfume of Freds', but the scent of the woman they loved. Their heads turned to meet the proud original Slayer standing behind them wearing a denim jacket, jeans and white t-shirt underneath. She wore her hair tied back in a pony tail.  
The vampires continued to stare in awe and Buffy did the same.

"Buffy," both vampires whispered at the same time under there breath. They gave each other a look before returning their gaze to Buffy. Freds' romantic spirit began to sing as she smiled happily for her boss and her friend.

"S-so what happened, last I heard you were all pillar of fire down in the Hellmouth," Andrew said breaking the silence. Spike's head turned back to Andrew as he furrowed his brow.

"What? You never told em' bout me, not even Andrew?" Spike said turning back to Buffy.

"Hey!" Andrew added a little offended.

"Oh yeah because that's a topic that frequently comes up in conversation, '_Buffy we're out of milk' 'okay I'll ask Spike to run it over from the store y'know because he's alive in L.A and all'_" Buffy said a little angry too.

"Can we save memory lane for later, for you know, after we've contained the psychotic super-powered killing machine," Angel cut in. Buffy gave Angel a look which he dodged. She knew this was going to happen.

"We were just about to bring everybody up to speed on Slayer mythology," Wesley said as he too picked up on Angel's change of attitude. "Buffy if you would," Wesley offered. Buffy opened her mouth to speak but Andrew cut in.

"I'll take it from here Pryce, it's best they here it from an expert," Andrew asserted.

"Oh right, let the top man have a go," Spike added.

"Please, enlighten us," Wesley mocked as he took a seat next to Fred.

"Gather round and attend to a most unusual tale, a tale I like to call _The Slayer of The Vampyres_. Eons ago on the Dark Continent, three wise elders decided to fight evil with a taste of it own medicine. They took a young girl," he grabbed Fred by the shoulders and she jumped slightly in shock, "and they infused her with the power of a demon, thusly the first _Slayer of the Vampyres_ was born. But alas the existence of a slayer is often brutal and short-lived. And the _Primitive_, as she was called, boasted no exception. But the elders had foreseen this inevitability and devised a way for her power to live on," Andrew told proudly.

"In every generation one is chosen," Fred said.

Andrew continued, "yes attractive slender woman, indeed so. There are many potentials as we experts call them-"

"Hundreds," Wesley interrupted, "maybe thousands per generation."

"Each of them experiencing vivid dreams, some say nightmares of the heroics of past Slayers…but only one can be chosen," Andrew said.

"That's really great, we actually…know all that," Angel mocked unnecessarily. Buffy gave him another disapproving glance.

"You think you know my good man, you think you know," Andrew said as he lit a pipe her bought on the plane and inhaled from it sending himself into a coughing fit.

"Wait," Lorne interjected, "if there's only one Slayer being the gorgeous girl behind me, what is miss _'whack your head off'_ doing scampering around?" Lorne asked. Buffy smiled to Lorne who returned the smile with a wink.

"A little Sunnydale surprise," Spike added.

"A few months ago," Buffy perked up adding to the conversation, "I had Willow make with the magics to activate all the potentials in waiting so we could beat back _The First _and save the world," Buffy told.

"An army of Slayer, brilliant stratagem," Wesley credited. "But I've heard of all these Slayer training facilities all over the world, why did nobody pick up on this _Dana's_ activation into a Slayer?" Wesley asked.

"I dunno, maybe because she's whacky? Could that have thrown Willow off?" Buffy asked.

"Possibly, Dana's mental instability would make her dreams seem more real and maybe that's why she's terrorising the city," Wesley suggested.

"My hypothesis exactly Pryce," Andrew chimed.

"Explains why the girl was yappin' at me in Chinese, must'a thought she was the Slayer I took out back in the Boxer Rebellion," Spike sounded.

"You mean the Slayer you murdered," Angel added.

"Well I didn't have a soul back then did I?" Spike defended.

"Oh yeah, because it makes such a difference now," Angel replied.

"Whatever, anybody needs me I'll be out there doing his job," Spike said as he turned to leave.

"Look we're the last two people who should be confronting her, **she's a Slayer!**" Angel warned as he followed Spike into the lobby.

"Which is why I'm going," Buffy said entering the lobby.

"Oh yeah, and how do you plan to find her love? Slayer's intuition?" Spike asked.

"You've got her scent right?" Buffy asked. Spike nodded, "then you're coming with me," she said.

"Then I'm coming too, I don't trust him with you Buffy…not after what he did to you," Angel said. Both Spike and Buffy were reminded of a night they both wished could be wiped from history and Buffy was enraged that Angel would use it as a weapon to hurt Spike, not realising that there were two people in that bathroom that night.

"Mr Angel!" called and executive from across the lobby, "I need you signature on these documents," the exec said.

"I trust that man with my life," Buffy said pointing to Spike, "besides, your duty calls," she said shaking her head at the man she loved before entering the elevator with the second man she had feelings for no matter how hard she tried to convince herself she didn't.

Chapter 3

After her adventure at the market Dana found herself at the docks. She was searching for something, shooting glances into every corner, under every rock and at the gravel below her stolen shoes. She began to travel back into her memories, to the memory of a man descending a dust-ridden staircase in heavy boots. She remembered him pulling on an air vent in the room, the room where her cries where the only sound. Her abductor inserted his hand into the vent and pulled out a small wooden box. Dana came back to reality and began losing her balance; she shakily sat on a formation of long pipes and quivered in fear. "Miss?" asked a burly dock worker who spotted the distressed girl. "Are you hurt?" he asked worried. "Miss? Do you need some help?" Dana ignored him, her sense of sound felt so far from her body that it was likely that she was oblivious to the dock workers' presence. Like the market worker, the docker put a hand on Dana's shoulder and she turned to him, he was aghast at the streaks of blood down her face; he took his hand away.

"Maybe Spike was right, y'know we should just get out there and find her," Angel suggested to his co-workers and friends…and Andrew.

"And then what? Kill her? What's happening isn't her fault," Fred objected.

"She is mentally unstable, not that it'll matter when she's stakin' ya' in the pump," Gunn added.

"Alright well look, we know that she's been spotted at these locations since her escape, if tactical were to do a sweep they'd have to cover at least 60 blocks," Angel informed.

"That'll take days if we're lucky," Fred said.

"Witness's say it was like she was looking for something, we have to figure out what," Angel replied.

"Well why not start at the source?" Lorne suggested.

"The asylum?" Andrew butted in.

"No, where all this started for _her_, she was abducted from home, right?" Lorne asked.

"Yeah but it was over 15 years ago," Angel added.

"Houses have _long_ memories Angel cakes you just gotta know how to get them to talk," Lorne smiled.

"Alright, set it up," Angel ordered.

Dana had already fled the docks by the time Spike and Buffy arrived. They had avoided conversation topics that they both were eager but worried to have and focused solely on Dana. Spike followed the scent of blood and they arrived at the bloody body of a blue sweater wearing burly dock worker. Buffy exhaled. "I see your tracking skills are as good as ever," she said.

"She's long gone, moved on maybe 20 minutes ago," Spike said.

"You do know I was being sarcastic right?" Buffy asked.

"This way," Spike said pointing further down the docks and ignoring Buffy.

"Lead the way," Buffy hummed. They kept walking, eyes and ears on alert and watching the perimeter for any swift Slayer like movement.

"So, how's red? Y'know after her whole amnesia stint?" Spike asked without making eye contact.

"Fine, she's uh, back on her feet," Buffy replied.

"Well good," Spike nodded.

"And what about you? After your power boost and whatnot," Buffy asked.

"Good, great actually, nice not havin' to worry about gettin' pissed and waking up to my noggin' on fire," Spike said.

"I'll bet," Buffy smiled. "I kinda' have some bad news," Buffy said.

"What?" Spike said as he stopped walking.

"Wood's dead," Buffy announced.

"Nikki's boy?" Spike asked with a raised eyebrow.

"That's the one," Buffy replied.

"How?" Spike asked.

"It's a long story," Buffy replied.

"Oh, and what about Faith, she holdin' up?" Spike asked.

"Y'know I don't remember you being this considerate," Buffy smiled.

"Things change love," Spike smiled back.

"She's okay, I mean she's not _Martha Stewart _okay but she's alright," Buffy told. Buffy spotted Spike's spider senses tingling. "What is it?" she asked.

"The scent, it's getting' stronger," Spike replied.

"Hardwood floors, central air, original Wayne's coating throughout, she's a real charmer from top to bottom," the real estate agent hummed. Lorne had brought Angel to the house Dana was abducted from along with a creepy bald psychic in a red and gold cloak.

"The walls scream…with the blood of the innocent," the psychic said as he traced his hand along the staircase banister. The agent looked at the creepy man nervously.

"I'll be in the car if you have any questions, and remember, it's a seller's market," she charmed. Angel smiled half-heartedly and watched her leave.

"You sure this guys reliable?" Angel asked Lorne referring to the psychic.

"Oh yeah, Burgan's top draw," Lorne replied.

"What're you picking up?" Angel asked Burgan as his expression changed when he touched the fireplace.

"Fear," Burgan said as he saw, in his mind, Dana's mother being murdered by a man. "Anguish," he continued, "pain, he needed them to suffer." Burgan went deeper into the houses memories and saw the man move further into the house.

"He? Who?" Angel asked.

"She's doesn't know him," Burgan said as he saw 10 year old Dana terrified but remaining perfectly still under her bed as she watched unfamiliar legs enter her room. "She tries to be still, tries to be invisible, but he senses her," Burgan chimed as he watched the abductor fling up Dana's mattress and lay eyes on the girl. Dana screamed. "And then…he's gone," Burgan finished.

"Where?" Angel asked, "Where did _he_ take her?"

"Dark, floor is cold, the air is thick with dust, with a sickly sweet smell like... molasses," Burgan told. "A basement," Burgan cried, "that's where her pain thrives."

Dana descended the basement's stairs, she'd found the place she was looking for. She looked around at the all too familiar environment. Barrels were stacked about the room, huge pipes stood tall in groups and the floor seemed to breathe ice into Dana's shoes. She saw a mess of chains around a group of pipes near the back of the basement that her abductor had used to restrain her; she then spotted the air vent. She crouched down but even with her heightened Slayer senses she could not see into it. She gripped her seemingly delicate fingers around the grate and pulled. She dropped the grate on the floor and pulled out several hammers and nails and remembered seeing them in the hands of her attacker as he tortured her years ago. She placed the weapons onto a wooden crate and inserted her hand in further until she found the small wooden box. She opened the lid and found the familiar tubs of coloured drugs and needles. The sight of the familiar objects sent her back into her memories. She was tied to the pipes and was staring into the face of her abductor. He knelt down and revealed bright bleach blonde hair.

"Let's try the blue one this time," Spike said as he placed the needle into young Dana's arm.

Spike and Buffy still followed Dana's scent down the docks and struggled to hear themselves think over the foghorns of the passing boats and ships. "Did you mean what you said back there Slayer?" Spike asked sincerely.

"About what?" Buffy asked.

"Trusting me, with your life," Spike said.

"Every word," Buffy admitted. Spike smiled to himself proudly but Buffy dodged the awkward conversation once more. "So is Angel always like that, Mr. Broody but only more so?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah, remember Eve? Pretty little trollup who sold you out to the Kunari's?" Spike asked.

"How could I forget," Buffy replied.

"Well last week she tried to kill Nancy Boy and he's been pissy ever since, thought seein' you might perk him up a bit but swing and a miss aye love," Spike told.

"Seriously re-thinking my whole 'no killing humans' for that tramp," Buffy said seriously.

"Me and you both Slayer," Spike said.

"Spike?" Buffy asked, she'd given in fighting her urge to ask him the difficult questions she'd been thinking of since they spoke last.

"Yeah?" he said as he took another sniff to stay on Dana's trail.

"When you came back, w-why didn't you try to contact me-**us**?" Buffy asked.

"Told you didn't I? Angel told me you were in Rome," Spike replied.

"But even so, if you're the guy I remember that wouldn't have stopped you, you could have called, even maybe sent an e-mail," Buffy added.

"Well y'see when I first got back I wasn't as touchy feely as I would've liked love, Senior Partners brought me back as a ghost…dicks," Spike said.

"But last time I was at Wolfram & Hart I seem to remember you more Jackie Chan than Casper," Buffy said. Spike exhaled heavily, he'd run out of false excuses.

"Truth is love I didn't know what to say, '_Hi Buffy, Spike here, I didn't burn up like you thought, why don't you take time out of rounding up the Slayer brigade, come to Wolfram & Hart and wisp me away to the far off land of happily ever after'_," Spike imitated himself. "Life's not a fairy tale love," he said.

"_'Life's not a song, life isn't bliss, life is just this, its living_. You said that," Buffy said.

"I remember," Spike beamed.

Angel and Lorne stepped into Wolfram & Hart lobby and found Wesley and Gunn anxiously waiting for their return. "Hey, how'd it go?" Gunn asked.

"I wanna find the guy who killed Dana's family, his name where he lives everything down to the last detail," Angel announced.

"The police never caught him," Gunn said puzzled.

"Yeah but we're not the police, raise the dead if you have to," Angel said. "Lorne I wanna know where he took her after he abducted her, psychic narrowed it down to a basement that smells like Molasses," he added.

Buffy and Spike neared the end of the docks when Spike suddenly stopped. "What is it?" Buffy asked.

"The scents different, stronger," Spike said as he ran to the corner and began investigating a dark small alley filled with spare boat parts. Buffy followed him. They continued down the alley until they came across the metallic rim wall of the fishing building.

"It's a dead end," Buffy said. Spike placed his hand on the wall, it was covered in blood. He showed his bloodied hand to Buffy.

"It's her blood," he said.

"Trap," Buffy announced, "looks like not all of her screws are lose," Buffy said.

Dana suddenly dropped from the roof of the building and smacked Buffy over the head with a long grey pipe. She fell to the ground with a thump. "Buffy!" Spike shouted. He grabbed Dana and threw her at a wall. He went for her with a kick which she dodged and tripped him up. He hit the ground hard but recovered fast and scissor kicked Dana to the stomach. She blocked his next attack and threw him to the ground. As Spike recovered he watched Dana set off around the corner. He spotted Buffy stirring back into consciousness and set off after the crazed rogue Slayer. He followed her scent around to the other end of the docks and found himself entering an unfamiliar building. He jogged down the corridor and found himself in the basement Dana was tortured in as a child. He confidently descended the stairs and saw her near the back of the room. "Alright pet, no getting away, got your scent locked in now, can track you for miles," he asserted.

"No escaping," Dana stammered.

"That's right, no escaping. All the same, I don't wanna have to hurt you," he said as he stepped towards her.

"It doesn't hurt if you hold still," Dana spoke.

"Right," Spike replied confused.

"Heart…and head. Have to get home, doesn't hurt if you hold still," Dana mumbled.

"You're a real sack of hammers aren't you," Spike said. "Hey, don't worry, I used to date a girl who wasn't all there," Spike smiled at the memory of Drusilla.

"Heart and head, stab the heart and cut off the head," Dana mumbled, "only way to be sure."

"That's Slayer talk isn't it," Spike said.

"Keep cutting till you see dust," Dana said as she advanced slowly toward the man she believed to be her abductor.

Spike began, "right, let me explain, you got visions right? Vampire and Slayer memories kicking around in your head, which is tough, because it sounds like your past midnight on the crazy clock anyway-"

"_Please don't, I have to get home to my son, to my Robin_," Dana said.

"Robin? Hey, you're talking about Nikki! The Slayer I offed back in- yeah you probably don't wanna think about that pet," Spike advised.

"William the Bloody," Dana announced.

"No, no, no, that's not gunna lead to anywhere good, you need to focus on what's real," Spike advised again.

"Head and heart, don't be scared, keep cutting until you see dust," Dana exclaimed as she whipped Spike up with her legs and he crashed to the floor. She dived onto him and jabbed a needle with a yellow substance right into his neck. Spike wailed in shock and pain. He spun Dana off of him and attempted to scramble to his feet.

"Y-you little minx, what d-did you do to me?" he asked as he fell to the floor again.

"Yellow's make you weak, but I'm not weak anymore," Dana said as she kicked Spike to the stomach.

"Alright, now you've made me mad," Spike slurred.

"Don't cry, they can't hear you," she replied. She ripped his coat from his almost unconscious body and dragged him along the floor.

She hurtled back into her memories and saw herself struggling in Spike's arms as he tied her infant self to the pipes with chains.

She came back to reality and tossed Spike into the chains and began to tie him up. "Daddy's gone, he can't hear you," Dana said as she headed toward the air vent and pulled out the box of drugs. She crouched next to him and inserted the needle into a bottle and began to suck the liquid into the syringe. "Piece by piece, yellow makes you weak," she inserted the needle into a second container, "brown makes you sleepy."  
She inserted the syringe into Spike arm and he began to drift to sleep. "You can't hurt me anymore," she announced.

"You crazy little-I never hurt you-" Spike slurred but was interrupted by the Slayer.

"Hold still; count backwards, 10, 9, 8, 7…"

Angel and the gang were still in Angel's office. Gunn was laying out a map of where Dana had been spotted and the sightings where all centred around the docks. "So she's staying in the area, good, get tactical to do thermal imaging and helicopter surveillance, the works," Angel ordered.

"Not sure you're gonna have much luck boss, this is an industrial area, most of the buildings will have a basement of some sort," Gunn said.

"Lorne, anything knew with the psychics?" Angel asked.

"No," Lorne said as he hung up the phone, "Still dark, creepy and smells like Molasses."

"**Whiskey!**" Fred announced excitedly.

"God bless you kitten I was just about to suggest the same thing," Lorne smiled.

"No, I mean when you're cookin' up whiskey it makes the whole room smell Molasses!" Fred said.

"Look for a distillery in the area, it's likely that'll be where we'll find Dana," Angel said.

"And Spike," Buffy announced as she stepped into Angel's office with a nasty gash on her head where she'd fallen unconscious after being whacked over the head.

"Buffy?" Fred asked.

"You're hurt," Angel said sincerely.

"I've been worse, trust me. We were tracking Dana, it was a trap she jumped me and took Spike," Buffy told.

"I'll go get some clean cloth and water and stuff," Fred said. Buffy nodded in thanks.

"But why Spike? Of all people it should be you that she'd recognise," Angel said confused.

"Never been much for the _why_ in these situations. I just wanna find this girl and fast," Buffy said.

"You mean you wanna find Spike," Angel added.

Chapter 4

Angel stood proudly with his hands at his waist and stared at Buffy from head to toe, taking in her details and figure like it was the last time he was ever going to see her. His last statement rang in her eyes as she stared at him too, except she stared with confusion and anger. "You mean you wanna find Spike," he had said. She scrutinised him and wasn't afraid to let it show. Lorne, Gunn, Wesley and Andrew shied away from the awkward moment by pretending to take phone calls and engaging in false conversation. The air was thick with fury.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Buffy asked angrily.

"Nothing, forget I said anything," Angel said as he shook his head and sat back in his seat sheepishly.

"This is so not the time for _that_ conversation," she whispered. Fred returned with a bowl and a warm damp cloth. She dabbed it against Buffy's wound and squeezed the soaked up blood into the bowl. "Thanks," she said to Fred warmly.

"Sure," Fred smiled.

"Here," Andrew called from behind the screen of Gunn's laptop.

"What did you find?" Angel asked.

"Distillery Warehouse down by the docks," Andrew replied proudly showing the room the map.

"Good work Andrew," Buffy said.

"Score one for Andrew while the superheroes are yet to score," Andrew celebrated. Buffy and Angel shot him a look, "I'll be quiet now."

"Wes, call Harmony and get her to bring the car around I can be there in 10 minutes," Angel ordered.

"I'm coming with you," Buffy said.

"I can handle it," Angel said.

"Not without my help, you'll get yourself killed," Buffy protested as she stood in front of the door blocking his path.

"Buffy I appreciate the concern but it's not necessary," Angel said.

"Angel this girl took down Spike and _he's_ stronger than both of us now," Buffy stated. Angel's eyes dropped as he felt a sting of anger behind them. "If we go together we'll have a shot," Buffy persuaded.

"Get out of my way Buffy," Angel sounded as he dodged passed the Slayer and entered the lobby.

"What do you have to prove here Angel?" Buffy called after him.

"I have to prove that I'm not second best to Spike for you, I'm the guy you should be with, not him," Angel called back.

"What about Nina?" Buffy shouted. Angel stopped abruptly.

"How do you know about Nina?" he asked referring to his werewolf girlfriend.

"Does it matter? What does matter is that you're with somebody and I'm not, and I'm not ready to be, can you just get over yourself for a couple of hours so we can save this girl from doing something she'll regret?" Buffy asked.

"I'll prove it to you Buffy, I'm the guy for you," he said as he stepped into the elevator and began to descend into his personal parking lot. Buffy headed straight for the stairs. She crashed into the lot just as Angel's red viper speeded out onto the L.A streets. Buffy pulled out her cell phone from her back pocket. She dialled Giles' cell.

"Hello?" he answered.

"Giles, it's me," Buffy replied.

"Buffy? What is it?" Giles asked.

"I think I'm gonna need some help," Buffy admitted.

Spike dazedly began to wake up from his reluctant slumber. His eyes where fogged as he looked around the dark basement. He could make out silhouettes of the objects but nothing more. His ears activated as he heard the sound of shoes stepping to the ground. He spotted, through the mass of barrels and pipes in front of him, Dana's slender profile. "Piece, by piece," she echoed eerily.

"W-what did y-y-you do t'me-" Spike slurred.

"Shh," Dana commanded, "stay quiet, I'll let you go," she said still remaining out of the light of the single buzzing light bulb.

"What did you do to me?" Spike asked drowsily as he felt something wasn't right.

"You're losing all your pieces," Dana said as she stepped toward him. Spike saw the rim of her metallic medical cleaver gleam in the light and reflect the blood of her victims.  
However fresh blood was dripping from the handle.  
He looked into her face and felt her anger and fury. "You can't touch me, anymore," she spat with every word laced with venom. Spike raised his arms to his face as he realised his hands were numb. However he found that his hands weren't numb at all, they weren't there. Instead were two fleshy stumps wrapped surgically in bandages. His eyes widened in shock. He felt the pain then; I guess it's true that what you don't know doesn't hurt you. Dana looked as his body wrapped in chains on the floor and shot a glance to his severed hands on the desk amongst her abductors weapons.

"Oh G-God, y-you," he stammered as he began to pass out. Dana hurled a punch at him and he was jolted awake.

"No more daddy, no more mommy, no more hands, can't touch me ever again," Dana said as she remembered Spike tying her up in chains when she was 10.

"I never touched you," Spike said confused. Dana hurled another punch to his face. Spike suddenly realised what was happening in Dana's mind. "Stop, y-you've got it wrong, your brains all jumbled, I never hurt you. It wasn't me, I've done my share of _bad_ but you're not one of em'. It's someone else," Spike said exasperated as he fought the pain in his arms and struggled to stay awake.

Dana thought deeply about the man who had abducted her, she saw his bleach-blonde hair, no, his black hair, bald in parts. She saw his muscular physique, no, she saw his weighted belly hang over his pants in rolls.

"You've got me confused with another man," Spike added. She remembered the bleach-blonde man tying her to the pipes, no, the weighted man with thin retreating dark hair was tightening her restraints. Dana shot back to reality in realisation that the man and vampire she had lured back to her place of torment to exact revenge wasn't the man whom had harmed her and killed her family. "You're visions are messing with your real memories," Spike said, "all that stuff jammed in your head, other slayers, other places, New York, China-"

"請不要停止," Dana interrupted him.

"That's what you're remembering, other Slayers," Spike told. Dana crouched beside him sombrely.

"Y-you killed her, you killed them both" Dana stated mournfully.

"Yes," Spike admitted, "but I was never here."

"Doesn't matter!" Dana exclaimed as she laid into the vampire with continuous hefty punches, "head and heart! Keep cutting till you see dust!"

Dana raised her weapon but was projected backward by the other vampire with a soul. She hit the ground hard but quickly got to her feet.

"Dana, look I'm here to help you," Angel began, "the man who tried to hurt you, his name is _Walter Kindell_, he tried to rob a liquor store five years ago and the police shot him, he's dead Dana."

"Hold still," Dana mumbled.

"He can't hurt you anymore," Angel continued.

"Can't hurt me, not weak anymore," Dana added.

"That's right," Angel said as he stepped toward her.

"Strong…_Slayer_," Dana cried as she launched a kick at Angel. He dodged it but received a blow to the stomach. She connected her fist to his jaw and he was sent toppling over a barrels and crates. He got to his feet and ducked a punch and collided his elbow with her face. She recovered and forcefully catapulted him toward a wall. She went to grasp him from the floor but instead he whipped around to her back and grabbed her by the neck.

"Now!" he exclaimed. Before Dana had the chance to struggle she was shot in the chest three times with silver red tailed tranquilizer darts. She fell unconscious to the ground and Wesley and a team of tactical ops hurried to her side. "Get the med team down here," Angel ordered when he spotted Spikes' severed hands. Spike lay unconscious and bleeding on the ground chained to the pipes.

"Get him prepped, get surgical on standby we'll be there in 10 minutes," Fred said down a phone as she helped pull Spike toward an ambulance in a gurney outside the distillery building, "oh for god sake, tell the Shaman no cadavers!" Fred ordered. She spotted a medical ops worker carrying a box labelled _Anatomy Transport_. "We've got his hands," she added.

Angel followed closely behind as he, Wesley and a team of tactical ops pulled Dana's gurney out of the basement and up onto the docks. "Chain her into the van and I want armed guards riding with her in the back," he ordered.

"That's alright boys I'll take her from here," Andrew said as he stepped into the clearing.

"What?" Angel asked.

"Totally appreciate your help on this one big guy, never could've found her without you but you got enough problems of your own to worry about," Andrew replied. Angel stared at him unphased.

"Get out of the way Andrew," Angel ordered as he moved around Andrew. He stepped in front of Angel confidently.

"She's a Slayer, that means…she's ours," he added.

"Yeah sorry that's not how it works, load her up and don't be afraid to tranq her if she stirs," Angel said turning his attention to the tactical ops guys.

"I don't think you heard me Angel," Andrew said. Before Angel could reply girls ranging from their teens to their late 20's started stepping out from corners of the docks and surrounding Angel's team. Kate, Alicia and Chris were amongst them. They stood behind Andrew strongly and confidently. Wesley's watcher senses began tingling in amazement at the ten-twelve Slayers he was amongst. "You think that we're just going to let you take her back to your evil strong hold? Well as they say in _Mexico…_no…we're not gonna…let you," Andrew added.

"Dana's psychotic and I'm not turning her over to you," Angel said furious that he was being intimidated by a kid.

"You don't have a choice, check the view screen Yoda, I have 12 _Vampyre_ Slayers behind me and not one of them has ever dated you," Andrew replied, "She's coming with us…one way or another."

"You're way outa' your league, I'll just clear this with Buffy," Angel said as he crossed his arms.

"Where do you think my orders came from?" Andrew asked. Angel's face dropped. "Newsflash, nobody in our camp trusts you anymore! Nobody. You work for Wolfram & Hart, don't fool yourself, we're not on the same side. Thank you for you're help but uh, we got it," Andrew smiled as he gave the signal to Chris, Kate and Alicia who grabbed Dana's gurney and began wheeling her away.

Angel exhaled and watched as the last ambulance pulled away.

In its space revealed a slender blonde in a denim jacket and jeans with her hair tied up. Her face was masked in flashing blue and red light but Angel knew it was her, without doubt his Buffy was standing at the edge of the docks. Wesley saw her too as she turned from his gaze and disappeared into the world.

Chapter 5

Buffy headed to a bus that Giles had convinced the watchers council to loan to the Slayers. Chris and Kate loaded Dana's gurney into the wheelchair portion of the bus and the rest of the Slayers and Andrew took a seat while a demonic driver drove the vehicle. Chris and Alicia offered to stay by Dana's side while Buffy rested; it was going to be a _long_ drive back to Ohio. If they kept a constant speed without stopping they would be back at the manor in 24 hours time, but when is anything ever that easy. The Slayers had gotten to L.A that fast because of a risky spell cast by the coven that only works one way. Buffy said her thanks to the Slayers that had offered to make the journey to L.A to help her out. Kate and Buffy had never seen eye to eye so she said as special thank you to her out of earshot of the other girls. Chris had said, and I quote, 'it was either this or cleaning the warehouse'.  
They had been driving for about ten minutes when Dana began to stir. Buffy had been called to the back of the bus. "Andrew how long are the tranquilizers supposed to last?" Buffy asked.

"They're for transport and considering she was only supposed to be going to Wolfram & Hart and not across the country I'm guessing she's gunna be opening her loony peepers pretty soon," Andrew said.

"It's too dangerous to have her awake in a contained environment," Buffy stated.

"I'll call Angel," Andrew offered as he took out his cell phone.

"No!" Buffy cut in. She took Andrews phone and dialled a number.

"You're on with Lorne," sang Lorne's voice through the speaker.

"Lorne, where are you?" Buffy asked

"Buffy? Kitten am I glad to hear from you, how's little miss whack your head off?" Lorne asked. Buffy shot a glance down at Dana.

"She's had better days, I need you to do me a favour," Buffy said.

Buffy had asked Lorne to meet her on the outskirts of the city with extra tranquilizers far away from Wolfram & Hart. Lorne had cautiously agreed and before they knew it they where walking up to each other warmly. Lorne opened his arms and Buffy embraced his bright orange suit. He had brought Fred with him because she was the only one who knew how the tranquilizers worked except for Wesley and Buffy wasn't keen on seeing him either. "You're Slayers know that I'm a good demon right?" Lorne asked after a threatening stare from Kate.

"Yeah," Buffy smiled.

"Here are the tranquilizers and a syringe. I thought a needle was better than carrying around the gun," Fred said as she handed over a black bag.

"Thank you guys, I really appreciate this," Buffy said.

"Ah don't worry about it," Lorne said.

"So how is he?" Buffy asked. Buffy didn't need to say their names, she knew they would tell her about both Angel _and_ Spike.

"Angel stormed up to his private loft above his office and disabled the elevator and the medics managed to reattach Spikes hands. He should be fine in a week or two," Fred informed.

"Good," Buffy said sincerely.

"And how are you munchkin? I know our Angel didn't show you the warmest hospitality and our blonde rescuer…well things didn't go to well for him either," Lorne said.

"I'm okay, Angel's moved on and maybe it's time I did to," Buffy said.

"I hope it all works out for you Buffy," Fred announced.

"Dana's going to be a handful…but we'll deal," Buffy sighed.

"I wasn't talking about Dana," Fred smiled. Buffy smiled too.

"Thank you," she said.

"Come here you!" Lorne said as he took Buffy into a hug. She hugged him tightly and then hugged Fred.

"Don't hesitate to call if we're needed," Buffy offered.

"You too," Lorne replied, "look after yourself kitten."

"Take care," Buffy smiled before returning to her borrowed bus and leaving L.A for what she hoped would be the last time for a while.

But the universe had other plans.

Over the next day the girls and Andrew stopped off at many gas stations in order to eat and use the bathroom. Dana was never left unwatched throughout the journey. She stirred in her sleep, spoke words and once even shot bolt up right but every three hours Andrew would insert the sedative into her arm and to somebody who didn't know any better, she was dead to the world.  
When it got to Tuesday afternoon the girls were getting restless so Buffy gave them an hour off the bus to eat and some even patrolled the streets. Buffy pointed out it wasn't likely that they would find any sunlight-resistant vampires in the area because a lot of the Slayers in North America lived in Cleveland and the rule with the new vampires was that there is one for every newly activated Slayer and when you kill one of the new vampires another one takes its place and the vampire is often gifted with the new abilities when it lives and hunts near the Slayer, but they insisted on doing a sweep.  
Buffy exchanged a phone call with Faith to ask her to get one of the first floor teaching rooms changed into a bedroom for Dana. Buffy guessed Faith had probably just had Vi or Cody do it but as long as it was done she was happy. Buffy attempted to start a conversation with the demon driver but he remained silent and robotic at the wheel. They pulled onto the private estate the manor was located upon late on Tuesday night. Although Buffy missed her home in California, she had grown accustomed to Ohio, Cleveland's sights and scenery. She enjoyed that her room overlooked Ohio's Lake Erie. Giles, Willow and Faith met Buffy at the Manor porch. "Girls, get Dana up to the first floor and put her on the bed. Tie the restraints, I'll be up in a minute," Buffy told Alicia and Kate. Cody signalled them from the doorway to show them which room it was. Buffy strolled over to Willow, Faith and Giles.

"She's going to be a handful isn't she," Giles said as she watched the Slayers carry the gurney over the porch steps.

"Understatement," Buffy replied.

"B you look exhausted, go take a nap or somethin' G-man and I got this," Faith offered. Willow looked up a little offended.

"Faith's right Buffy, I can't imagine you've had much sleep on that thing," Giles said indicating the bus.

"Good thing about Slayers, sleep isn't extremely necessary…yet," Buffy yawned.

"Maybe you should use one of those sedatives on yourself," Faith said pointing out Buffy's black bag. Willow slapped Faith on the arm. "What? Just tryna' help," Faith said.

"Maybe we should keep the newbie sedated till the morning?" Willow offered.

"Even still, the last thing she remembers is fighting Angel in a basement and then waking up in Ohio tied to a bed? It's like we're giving her excuses to go on a killing spree," Buffy argued.

"Well we'll take shifts to watcher her through the night," Willow said.

"Yeah okay," Buffy agreed as she began walking to the manor with her friends.

"So how was Wolfram & Hart? Still as evil as ever?" Willow asked chipperly.

Buffy shot Willow and exhausted look.

"That bad huh?" Willow guessed.

Author's Note: Thank you to all the reviewers and subscribers. Some of the scenes and dialogue from this episode are not of my own creation and belong to the writers of Angel and Joss Whedon.  
If you have enjoyed My Season 8 so far and wish to read the second half them I encourage you to do so, I would really appreciate it. It is available on my profile, give it a shot, please.

Thank you for reading.


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